Kott Trial Day 14 - Defense Closing

I've put a long introduction on the first of today's posts - the Prosecution Closing I. Read that for all the caveats and disclaimers. These are rough, typed in court notes. They give you a sense of what was said, but they ARE NOT RELIABLE. Parts are missing. The attorneys spoke faster than my fingers can type.

Again, go here if you want to find the actual audio and video tapes that match those mentioned here.

[Added Sept. 25 - Links to the audio of Mr. Wendt's Closing. From the ADN website.
Defense attorney, Jim Wendt:
- Part: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 ]




10:11 Wendt [lead defense attorney] - I had my closing prepared, but making a detour based on what Goeke said. He talked about PK’s greed. Not a shred of evidence that says he was a greedy man. He works hard for his money, never asked anything from anyone, offered to put in Allen floors for free. This isn’t so. PK isn’t a greedy man. I’m sure you’ll find that.

It is true what you heard in the opening from the worthy attorney from DC this is about trust. They want you to think that pk violated the government’s trust. He hasn’t violated any trust. Always held to his principles. He was a hard worker. Whether putting himself to school, in the service , grad school, on his knees putting in flooring, in the legislature, he was a hard worker.

This principle of hard work is the bedrock of what pk is about. Everything towards a goal and he wants to get that goal. He’s never asked anyone for anything. He’s worked for what he has. Corrupt? We all have our own definition. PK is not a corrupt individual. Not about trust, but about work.

Remember what EB said about legislation. it’s like sausage, you don’t want to see it being made. It may not be pretty but that’s how it’s made . Not pretty.

I want to go over the case:

Wit. 1 - called by govt. very interesting, knowledgeable guy. Pleasure to hear him speak about ppt and explain. When he was working on ppt he was part of admin. He supported 20/20.

Some witnesses I don’t understand why called.

Sudan Lowell - said pk was speaker of the house

STeve Dunphy: fbi agent - here for one purpose to sit on stand while all govt tapes they wanted you to see, about 58 tapes entered into evidence. in cross exam, agent dunphy said there about 1500 calls intercepted on ba’s phone. About 6500 on ba’s cell and about 9000 on rs cell phone. About 17,500 phone calls and you had 58 tapes, maybe 40 phone calls. You can bet the 40 most damaging one s have been presented. In addition there were video taping from janu to mid june. 12-16 hours some days, others no video at all. Maybe an average of four a day = >600 hours of video. You got , what, less than ten hours. That is what AGent dunphy was here to do

Carla here just to enter travel docs to show pk was outside of ak when he made the phone call

BA and RS - talk later

Brooke Miles - about packet sent to all legislators
Linda Croft = BA’s secretary had written two checks
Jennifer Ferguson about checks going thru the Key bank
Dave Ditmann
Bruce Milne -FBI agent, pk said he did nothing wrong. $7,993 so my son could work on my campaign.

And that was the govt.’s case.

Before I go to our case, want to show what govt. didn’t show you. They could have brought in legislators, but they didn’t. Mentioned three legs Gab. LeDoux, EB, and Fred Dyson. Claimed PK held up Dyson’s abortion bill. Where is that? It doesn’t exist. Didn’t happen. Talked about it, but it didn’t happen. He voted to get it out of committee before ppt became an issue. pk never told Sen dyson anything. They could have brought dyson in to testify about it. pk did nothing to harm that bill, but instead voted it out of committee and voted for it on the floor.

pk did one thing only, voted to get the ppt bill the way he wanted. We presented legis for you to see exactly what he did. Rep LeDoux said that is what we do, we talk to people about legislation. EB said he had no control over Croft or Crawford. Prosecution suggested pk used trickery. Why didn’t govt bring in these legislators? Because they don’t support the govt’s case. The legis who were allegedly manipulated by pk weren’t. It was not good for a legislator to come in to testify for the defense, but we brought them in and they came.

Govt. didn’t bring in actual legislators, rested their case on ba and tapes.

They didn’t tell you about pk’s voting record. Because his record doesn’t support their theory. We brought it in and went over it line item by line item on PPT. Showed his voting record on other bills. You saw he never did anting contrary to his principles. Pro-labor and pro development. He’s never changed.

Govt. didn’t present his voting record because it doesn’t support their case. They didn’t bring it in. We did.

We brought in

Dr. Clive Thomas - talked about legislature - stage for what Pete Kott could and couldn’t do.

Peter Kott - he was determined to finish the flooring jobs
Brooke Miles - showed the pk made $1000 contribution to Mrk campaign the day he allegedly got $1000 from ba

PK answered all the questions even when they were shouted at him

LeDoux
Ohmer - nice woman, worked for pk for many years. RS upset one day and pk not changing. and that pk had a drink. What you see on these tapes is pk drinking, not on the floor of the house sober working for his constituents.

I told you what pk did not do. Now I’m going to tell you what he did do.
You’ve heard a lot of tapes and phone conversations. Exposed not only to picked out tapes, even portions cherry picked out of context. What I have now is an illustrative dramatization that shows when things are taken out of context. Dim the lights please.

10:29 Technical difficulties - power point, trying to get it started.

10:30 didn’t work

Power point - Walk thru highlights

Sept 05- Aug 2006

Making time line
9/26/05 - initial call pk, says, i wanna job - He’s asked, what do ya need. You gotta job, get us a pipeline. I wanna be a consultant like Knauss.
That is it. This is indicative of pk asking for a job from VEco. There are 1000s of phone calls and this is all they’ve got. He’s not a legislator now, it’s out of session, he’s putting in flooring at the gym in Kake. Out of communication. Not in Junau, ER, Anchorage, he’s in Kake.

Happy New Years call - to get instructions. There are none to give. There’s no ppt bill, he’s been out of the loop in Kake, and calling the man he relies on for the man he trusts for oil and gas information. What does that mean - what are my instructions? - does that mean tell me what to do an I will do it? It means, “I wanna hear from you, your an older and wiser man, what do you think? I wanna hear from you.” I’m doing this with Ms. Simonian who you probably figured out is a lot more aware political than I. I don’t know about that Would you think it unusual if I leaned over and asked Ms. Simonian and asked, “What do I do now?” He just wants to talk to ba, hear what he has to say about upcoming legs.

June 11, - call about getting the gasline. PK always for gas pipeline. You’ve seen his campaign literature from 2002 and 2004 he’s always been for a pipeline. And that’s the discussion here on June 11. At this time talking about common goal. Gov. not helping much

June 14 another call. Here, rs says to pk 25% might kill us. pk says 25 is done. He’s saying at 25% we’re not gonna have a pipeline. If you listen what he actually says is, then we’re dead so is the state.

Jan 20 conversation @ horsepower. Conversation about Chris knauss and jim clark. JC with administration. ba and rs wanted jim clark to think highly of them. Talking about how chris knaus made them look back in front of jim clark. You don’t think people talk like this all the time “who do we have?” the sierra club talks like that everyone does. Nothing criminal about it.
Feb 21, 2006 Gov. introduces ppt bill. PK has nothing to do with it cause he’s not on any of those committees.
3/10 phone call - yes, call to get a phone number. No question about that. When pk calledspeciclly asked, got thurwacker’s number. Then T comes in. the T talks to rs. What happens then? Call is minimized. Because fbi doesn’t think it interesting to listen to. Nothing unusual about it. Had there been, then the call wouldn’t have been minimized. then T gets off and off hand conversation about what they’re going to do about Marathon, idle chatter, we gotta get an exemption, rs I’ don’t really like them. Mentions $73million, min revenue before ppt kicks in - they already have some sort of exemption. When you listen to whole tape - you’re my best buddy, I’ve got a lot of best buddies. Govt. wants you to think that’s wire fraud. Where’s the plan or scheme in the phone conversation There is none.
3/15 [all these being added to dark blue background power point slide with yellow boxes.] pk stating to rs and ba what and why he believes. You don’t here him saying, “this is great I’m going to get a good job.” No, this is what we need, if we don’t get it, long term Alaskans will suffer. That’s what he says.

April -May slide
4/ Barbados call. This is the call where the govt says PK tied everything together. You guys are going to get the pipeline and I’ll get my nice job in barbados. That’s what the gov. says. But let’s listen to phone call - apparently we have a problem here, this is not working. It’s working on the computer. Perhaps I can talk about something else and you put the other computer on.

To the jury. Apparently we’ve switched computers. I’ll continue with my closing and then we’ll get back to this. Lights?

actually this is a good time to take a break and come back. Room 604, the Animal House. Well known. 100’s of hours of video and you know, it wasn’t just pk who went there. RS and ba inviting anyone to come up who wanted. Lobbyists, legislators, staff members. What was it? A place for boasting and banter, fueled by alcohol. Boasting and banter. And that’s the core of the govt’s case. Govt. resting its case on the animal house as though what goes on there is somehow reliable. Granted it was among men who should have known better . ba and rs blameless? No. Both had over $400K in

pk has $11,000. Not only were they risking their freedom and their children’s freedom and Veco if it were indicted as a corporation. A full account of that is not presented here, but it has to wait till another day. You know about the house renovation, pig roast and other things hinted at. They weren’t worried about this case. They weren’t worried about that.

PK is the one man who never took anything. BenStevens had contract for $100K. Tom Anderson had a contract. Sen. STevens had his whole house redone. While PK was on his hands and knees doing flooring. These other guys didn’t have to do any work. He didn’t ask for a dime, he didn’t ask for a job then. The govt. is taking from 100’s of hours of tape they are taking out a few innocent conversations out of context and comparing that to these other men who got so much from ba and rs. PK never got anything. That’s what happened, in essence in the animal house. You don’t thing there are tapes you havnt heard of these other men getting their share? Just pk drinking too much. Things that don’t comport with the voting records

Look at screen. Is it gonna work. If you take something out of context.

starting up. black screen. back to power point. Bak to black screen. power point. black.. arrow going around the screen.
Apparently it doesn’t work. Does the audio work?

And I get... on the screen. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work, I’ll just have to read it to them.

This is what I’d like you to do, if you will

can we turn off screen off?

W: talking about Barbados and the pipeline. hold on a second here.

Simonion to Wendt - one more

Tape working- Barbados tape.

W: Why did I play that? The govt says this is tying everything in. Govt. get gasline and I’m going to get barbados. They laughed. He sounds despondent. and he says, and I’m going to get my job in barbados. Then he says shit. Excuse my language. He knows he isn’t going to get anything. I’m going to get my job in barbados is equivalent to I’m gonna gt nothing.” And then they laugh.

10:58 April 26, 2006 -

5/7/2006 first time bill hits the floor, Between 4/18 and May 7 you have no tapes. Nothing there. First time pk can vote ont he bill. passed out of finance. 5/6/ I apologize. Passes out of House Finance. They reduced it to 20%. PK had nothing to do with that. now it’s back in front of the house.

May 7 floor debate [power point up May7-9, 2006]

This is not part of power point, but part of the exhibit. You haven’t seen this, but its been talked about. We went line item by line item, you saw that. attached is the actual house journal, you’ll have the whole thing in the jury room This is the house journal that ties into those items. Amendment, raising the 20% to 21%. The infamous BW votes wrong. You can see the yeas and nays. PK voted no. 21.5% passed. Interesting. LeDoux changed to yeah. Original 20-20. For whatever reason, we don’t know why, GL switched from nay to a yeah. After ward. She didn’t switch for the jury. Nothing on the tape about getting Gabrielle to do this for us. this Ms. LeDoux does this and it passes. You don’t hear any of that.

Back to power point now?

Call to rs. I’m going to do rescinding motion Pete calls rs and says 21.5 passed, i’m going to do a rescinding motion. Doesn’t ask rs what to do? He tells rs what he’s going to do. What occurs is rs says to do it tomorrow and he says, “I’m going to do it today.”

[Plays tape. It works!!!] [I think BA said ‘yeah Gabrielle...’ if so, that contradicts what Wendt just said, check the tape. Discussion of who is going to make the motion, better to do it right away.

OK, then there was motion. to rescind passes 22-18. [Looking at Journal on screen]
Can we get back to powerpoint

Back to 20% amendment failed.

[back to journal[ let’s go to next one

[powerpoint] relates to phone call march that govt says is wire fraud. pk votes yes, remember that was what rs originally didn’t want to go thru.

Power point...

Now adjourned may 10. room 604. This is where pk tells rs and ba what he did. I’m gonna tell you how this really came down. you can’t tell a soul, I told EB we can mess this up real good expletives deleted. He’s tell them he got this done, but we know that isn’t true because they were always against it.

I sold my soul to the devil. If you were going to listen to this as though he’s done something illegal. rs what did you do. “I did something with eb that wasn’t totally above board. That wasn’t true. To get ppt. passed.

5/8/ We’re still brand new here. pk says, we’re going to have to go higher. We don’t have this one? that’s ok. to RS

We’re going to have to go to 21. So he’s not sticking with 20%. He’s telling them what is going to have to happen. Working towards a compromise. Hopefully to get a bill that will get a gas pipeline.

May 8 in 604. talk about staying at 20%. Kott says I don’t want to jeopardize pipeline, I’ll stay at 20 and so will others, but I’m not going to jeopardize pipeline.

11:15am Am2 to Am1 offered by kott. He’s given up on 20%, it’s only been there a day and he gives up. And it passes at 21. What is this? OK

Then kelly withdraws and it goes back to 20. But pk voted for 21.

May 8-9 slide

Rates now 21.5 [The power point stuff just isn’t working right, lots of side talk to Smonian (other defense attorney)]

Pete kott votes yes! 21.5 he’s voting yes. He’s not sticking with Vic Kohring and the nays. Next screen.
And then it passes the house. 21.5 PK votes yes. May 9 is the last day of the session

[back to journal on the screen]

28 yes 11 nays you can see pk voted yes. He’s voting for 21.5. Kohring stays at 20. Next screen. Keep in mind, we’re the ones who showed you the voting record. If we hadn’t shown you, all you’d have is the bragging in the tapes.

May 10-June 9

Ohh. this is giving him a thousand dollars in the hotel. And what occurs here. BA specifically says here, you can listen to the tape. Thanks for doing me with your check. He’s paying him back. pk wrote a check to Murkowski for $1000 and BA is paying him back. The govt. didn’t tell you that.

Sen. Bill passes the house at 23.5. PK thinks it to high. 21.5 ok. House rejects conference report.

bragging to bowles. Allen bragging I don’t know who bowles is - senior person with oil.[Jim Bowles is president of Conoco Phillips Alaska,]

June 9- August 10

Offers to do flooring free. BA insists on paying

secret meeting in the bar. Had to go to bar where things not recorded, out in public.

hb 3001 passes the house, pk votes yes. This is important. This is the sliding scale, ba didn’t want it, but pk goes with sliding scale. passes senate at 22.5%

PK says ok 22.5 we have a workable bill. aug 10 special session ends. No conversations about ppt with pk at this time because they don’t help the govts. case.

PK did what he always does. He worked to get legislation passed. He wasn’t working for BA. PK didn’t hold tight to 20/20 when he saw it wouldn’t work. That’s what passed and that’s what we have today.

He may have gone to the animal house, drinking and boasting, but none of that matches what actually happened. We showed you the voting records, they didn’t. They used rs and ba, don’t you think those men desperately want to avoid jail time? If I were a betting man, I think that neither will see a day in jail. Basically, I think ba is an honest man. He wans’t giving pk $1000 as a bribe. Maybe he thinks it will help him get out of jail.
BA says sometimes he’d get up at 6 am and didn’t come back til 7pm because he was out paying his bills. Anyone who works like pk I have a lot of respect. Did you remember a conversation about a lobbyist at your home that wasn’t recorded? When pk got the floors done and I said, what do I owe you and he said “nothing.” PK didn’t want to take his money, but for pk he was uncle bill, He had millions of dollars and people came to him for his money, but pk didn’t have a business association with his friends.

PK was a worker. He may have been a drinker and when he drank he shoots his mouth off, but he was a worker. A man who always wanted a pipeline. If ba disagreed with him on pers/trs and workers comp, that was too bad. pk voted his conscience.

BA was knowledgeable about gas and oil. pk loved him got oil and gas info from him. Been through a hard life. got enormous wealth. Ba is a nice fellow. Don’t know about rs. That’s what pk thought about ba. He loved the man. You don’t think there was any time he couldn’t ask ba for money or a job and wouldn’t have gotten it? he could have at any time and sat in a comfortable chair.

I want to go over with you the jury instructions:

One thing, very interesting instruction, direct and circumstantial evidence. When direct evidence contradicts circumstantial evidence and it isn’t rebutted. then the direct trumps circum. And the voting record is the direct.

Witness manner when you testify. You remember rs, I’d ask a question and he’d look over at these gentleman or his attorney. The witnesses interest in his jail sentence. He was hoping if he did ok, he wouldn’t see a day in jail. they say, there was no agreement. When pk’s house was raided? found an invoice for 5500. It was already prepared. They didn’t know they were going to be raided. There is evidence that contradicts there testimony. Pk’s son truthfully testified and it contradictis. [talking really fast now] I would argue that rs’s testimony is not reasonable. He changed many times.

Statements by the defendant. and how to evaluate those. one thing judge will tell you is to consider all the evidence and the circumstanes. You need to eval circ. under which he made the statements. He was intoxicated and trying to impress uncle bill. In reality he’s compromising and getting ac compromised bill. Fact that ba and rs is not evidence against pk and you can weight that only to evaluate their credibility

Extortion, conspiracy.
Conspiracy, not enough to just meet, you must find beyond a reasonable doubt that there was a plan to commit a crime. there was no plan to commit a crime. The plan was to pass the legislation. How can we get it passed. That was the plan. getting the ppt legislation passed

Extortion - do you really think pk really extorted money from ba? We are torturing the English language to say that. What official action did he take? If you think the poll was given to pk and he got it, then you have to prove he did it in exchange for something specific. You have to tie it in to an act. They can’t do that. It may be an illegal gratuity, but he isn’t charged with that.

Bribery. They have to prove that pk was corrupt. Def. acted voluntarily and intentionally......That’s what corrupt is. They have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt. That he did it in connection in his head in connection with doing a legislative act.

And then the wire fraud. And if that telephone call is wire fraud, I don’t know shaking head... You think that was an important part of scheme or plan. firs there was no plan, they were just trying to get legislation passed.

He may be a drinker, he was shooting his mouth off. The govt. wants you to believe where there is smoke there is fire. They’ve only showed you the smoke. Sometimes where there is smoke, all there is is puffing. Puffing. Acting like a horse’s moth. He’s never done ex, etc. Never did anything for ba except to work with them for what they wanted to accomplish. Pete Kott believed we aren’t going to get a pipeline unless we get a ppt. A republican gov.introduced a bill supported by a republican representative. Shooting his mouth off. Now he has pictures of himself on the internet for his grandkids to watch. He spent years in the legislature and in flooring and the Air Force. And it’s not funny, sir.
I’m asking, go back, come back with not guilty verdicts. This man has suffered enough. Maybe he drinks too much and swears too much but that’s the only bad thing this man has done in his life.