Container Top
Homes   Jobs   Cars   Shopping
Search

Events Calendar

EVENT SEARCH:

In This Section


Most Read Stories


Blogs:


Pets:
Summit teams up with Rescue Waggin' to save dogs

The Heldenfiles:
Songs for an American Day

Patrick McManamon:
Touching on the Browns, Cavs

Akron Zips:
Opponent outlook: Northern Illinois

Browns Bulletin:
Single-game ticket sales begin July 11

Tribe Matters:
Wedge assured of job through season

Cleveland Browns:
Stallworth test showed marijuana

Kent State Sports:
Men's Basketball Scheduling update

Cleveland Cavaliers:
Updated: Free Agency: Another Gone - Apparently

All Da King's Men:
The Obligatory Palin Post

Blog of Mass Destruction:
Wow….Sarah Palin Resigns Governorship

Akron Law Café:
Abraham Lincoln and the Fourth of July

Varsity Letters:
Highland senior receives honor

See Jane Style:
Picnic Wear

Car Chase:
Where do We Go from Here?

Let's Talk Real Estate:
Happy 4th of July!

Ohio Travels with Betty:
Tom asks where to stay while visiting the football Hall of Fame.

Sound Check:
Rundgren fans rejoice!: Second night of AWATS at The Civic added

HRLite House:
Morscruethal Behaviors or Just Lip Service?

Akron Gamer:
Hot link: Best of Nintendo at E3

Jury selection begins in mortgage-fraud trial

By Ed Meyer
Beacon Journal staff writer

Prosecutors began questioning a pool of 48 prospective jurors this morning in the Summit County trial of former Evergreen Corp. President David B. Willan.

The 38-year-old Willan is facing 69 charges from the original 147-count indictment alleging widespread mortgage and securities fraud in the Akron area.

Retired Summit County Common Pleas Judge James E. Murphy is handling the case by appointment, and at the beginning of the proceedings he warned the jury pool about what they are up against.

''This case is long, arduous and difficult,'' Murphy said.

It involves ''massive amounts of paperwork'' that lawyers from both sides have been going over for months, he added.

Murphy has scheduled the trial to last four weeks — the first three weeks most likely covering the government's case against Willan.

In December, Willan and 16 co-defendants were named in 147 counts of an indictment announced during a news conference by county and state authorities and law enforcement officials.

But at the government's request, Murphy streamlined the massive case, eliminating the charges against the co-defendants from this portion of the trial.

Six of the original co-defendants have since pleaded guilty to various felony charges, and most, if not all, are expected to testify against Willan.

Defense attorneys William T. Whitaker and his daughter, Andrea L. Whitaker, are representing Willan. They had not begun their questioning of potential jurors before the lunch break.


Ed Meyer can be reached at 330-996-3784 or emeyer@thebeaconjournal.com.

Prosecutors began questioning a pool of 48 prospective jurors this morning in the Summit County trial of former Evergreen Corp. President David B. Willan.

The 38-year-old Willan is facing 69 charges from the original 147-count indictment alleging widespread mortgage and securities fraud in the Akron area.

Retired Summit County Common Pleas Judge James E. Murphy is handling the case by appointment, and at the beginning of the proceedings he warned the jury pool about what they are up against.

''This case is long, arduous and difficult,'' Murphy said.

It involves ''massive amounts of paperwork'' that lawyers from both sides have been going over for months, he added.

Murphy has scheduled the trial to last four weeks — the first three weeks most likely covering the government's case against Willan.

In December, Willan and 16 co-defendants were named in 147 counts of an indictment announced during a news conference by county and state authorities and law enforcement officials.

But at the government's request, Murphy streamlined the massive case, eliminating the charges against the co-defendants from this portion of the trial.

Six of the original co-defendants have since pleaded guilty to various felony charges, and most, if not all, are expected to testify against Willan.

Defense attorneys William T. Whitaker and his daughter, Andrea L. Whitaker, are representing Willan. They had not begun their questioning of potential jurors before the lunch break.


Ed Meyer can be reached at 330-996-3784 or emeyer@thebeaconjournal.com.



Story tools

Email  Email   Print  Print   Save  Save   Reprint  Reprint   Popular  Most Popular   Reprint  Subscribe

Share this story

AddThis Social Bookmark Button


mike

Posted 03:35 PM, 11/17/2008

Quit spending our tax dollars (a million and counting so far) on this case. Evergreen provided a ton of jobs in Akron and generated millions of dollars for our community and was building/renovating new homes ALL OVER Akron ... with all the vacant houses and detiorating nieghborhoods we should could use Evergreen again.

Spend OUR money on the getting the violent criminals so us and our kids can walk the streets safely!

The Ohio AG, Summit County Sheriff and the prosecutors keep claiming they are on a tight budget ... I can think of alot better ways a million dollars and thousand of man hours could've been spent.

Quit going for headlines and start helping us be safe in our own neighborhoods.


bbd

Posted 03:41 PM, 11/17/2008

Mike,
Amen...couldn't agree more.


mike

Posted 05:50 PM, 11/17/2008

Hey Brett ... care to elaborate?


PacMan
My Heart Is In K-Town, .

Posted 08:58 PM, 11/17/2008

Am I missing something here...this guy is innocent until proven guilty and you want to let him off before that's decided? Did I read that several of his staff have already pleaded out? If it looks like a duck...
















Most Commented Stories