TRAFICANT ON TRIAL Defense likely to finish next week

The congressman says he destroyed an audiotape to protect his witness.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
CLEVELAND -- Even though U.S. Rep. James A. Traficant Jr. says witnesses are ducking his subpoenas, he plans to finish his defense next week.
"Your case can't go along with big holes," U.S. District Judge Lesley Brooks Wells warned the congressman late Wednesday. She pointed out that the jury, court staff and court reporters come in every day expecting to work a full day.
Traficant, of Poland, D-17th, has been operating a stop-and-go defense, mostly because there haven't been enough witnesses in court to fill a day.
And the witnesses who are called don't take long because the prosecution team -- Craig S. Morford, Bernard A. Smith and Matthew B. Kall -- has devoted little time to cross-examining them, sometimes asking no questions at all.
The prosecutors spend most of their time objecting to Traficant's style of questioning, which includes his own statements. Each time there's an objection, Judge Wells tells the congressman that the testimony has to come from the witness, not him.
The judge wanted to know who would testify today.
Traficant said he had to make some calls.
What was planned: The congressman hoped to have a bank representative or records custodian from Home Savings & amp; Loan; Josephine Hulett, a member of his staff; Youngstown contractor Greg Tyson; and Youngstown attorney Mark S. Colucci.
He said he has seven or eight subpoenas to be served but couldn't recall the names of the other witnesses without his list. He said some witnesses are ducking the subpoenas.
Judge Wells asked if he would conclude his defense today. He said next week.
The racketeering trial began Feb. 5 with jury selection and testimony began Feb. 13. The prosecution team called 55 witnesses and rested last Thursday.
Since then, the jury has heard from 14 defense witnesses, four of whom are congressional staff members.
To be decided: Testimony also was given Wednesday by Russell J. Saadey Jr. of Austintown, but not in front of the jury. Judge Wells was to decide today if some or part of the testimony that involves a conversation Saadey had with his brother-in-law, James R. Sabatine of Canfield, could be used as evidence.
Sabatine has already testified for the government, admitting he gave Traficant a $2,400 bribe in August 1998 in return for a congressional favor.
Saadey was accompanied to court by his Youngstown lawyer, Brian P. Kopp, who advised his client throughout the testimony when to invoke the Fifth Amendment. By invoking the right, Saadey was able to not answer questions that could put him in jeopardy.
Saadey will be sentenced April 19 in an unrelated corruption case.
Saadey said Sabatine told him that the $2,400 represented a political contribution, not a bribe. Previous testimony has shown that Traficant did not claim a $2,400 campaign contribution from Sabatine.
Saadey said Sabatine was "under pressure to do certain things to protect himself."
The pressure came from the FBI, Saadey said. "They threatened to take everything he had -- that was our conversation."
Did the FBI actually threaten to take everything or was it something that Sabatine perceived as a reaction to what was said, Smith asked.
"I wouldn't know that," Saadey answered.
Tape destroyed: Traficant, who had an audiotape of his conversation with Saadey about Sabatine and another matter, said he destroyed the tape Tuesday night to protect Saadey. Smith asked Judge Wells to sanction the congressman for destroying evidence he failed to turn over and prohibit any of Saadey's testimony from being heard by the jury.
"All my witnesses who have evidence of my innocence in this matter have not been allowed to testify with some hearsay testimony," Traficant said after court. "I understand the game, I understand it very well. I'll make no more comments about it. Period."
In court, Saadey said he was offered leniency or immunity if he could provide the FBI with something on Traficant, James A. Philomena, former Mahoning County prosecutor, or others. He said his cooperation was sought before Philomena was charged, which took place in September 1999.
During that month, contractor Anthony R. Bucci turned over to the government evidence he had against Traficant. The subsequent investigation led to the congressman's 10-count indictment in May 2001.
Traficant told Judge Wells that he wants Bucci to come back to testify again but has had no luck with a subpoena. Bucci, who now lives in Florida, testified as a prosecution witness, saying he provided free work at the congressman's horse farm in return for favors.
Johnson's testimony: Aside from Saadey's testimony, Judge Wells also must rule on the admissibility of testimony given Wednesday, without the jury present, by Dennis C. Johnson, a congressional employee. Johnson recalled conversations he had with Charles P. O'Nesti and J.J. Cafaro.
The conversations refute previous testimony that O'Nesti kicked back part of his congressional salary and show Cafaro had a motive to cooperate against Traficant. O'Nesti is dead. Cafaro said he provided Traficant with $40,000 in cash and boat repairs in return for favors.
Who testified: The jury heard from three congressional staffers -- Robert Barlow, Anthony T. Traficanti and Linda J. Kovachik. All three gave nearly identical testimony in several areas.
Traficanti said the two FBI agents who arrived at his door knocked hard and it scared him and startled his mother. One agent didn't speak but stared the whole time, he said.
"I was very shook up," Traficanti said.
He learned that the FBI had been to his father's trucking business, where the congressman has an Avanti sports car stored. The car was manufactured by Cafaro in Youngstown.
Barlow and Traficanti offered similar testimony about Henry A. DiBlasio, Traficant's former administrative assistant, and Jackie Bobby and Grace Yavorsky Kavulic, former congressional staffers.
DiBlasio is under indictment, accused of lying about kicking back part of his salary to Traficant. Bobby and Kavulic testified that O'Nesti told them about his kickbacks to the congressman.
Barlow and Traficanti said DiBlasio worked hard. Under cross-examination, they admitted they had little contact with DiBlasio.
Previous testimony has shown that DiBlasio, who maintained a full-time law practice, did little work for a high salary.
Barlow, Traficanti and Kovachik said O'Nesti wasn't close friends with Bobby and Kavulic. They all said Bobby and Kavulic didn't get along and described power struggles.
Ruling expected: Kovachik slipped in a hearsay statement in front of the jury that Judge Wells would rule on today. The conversation, Kovachik said, took place when O'Nesti encouraged her to come back on staff in February 2000.
"I said, 'I don't know about these kickbacks, Mr. O'Nesti,' he says he had not [kicked back]," Kovachik testified.
Although the prosecution team had no questions for Kovachik, Traficant wanted her back today.
Traficanti's testimony, when compared with what he told the grand jury about DiBlasio and work at the farm, didn't quite match, according to the prosecutors.
Morford used a transcript to show that Traficanti considered baling hay at Traficant's horse farm hard, sweaty work that created hay chafe and aggravated his allergies.
When the congressman questioned Traficanti, he testified that he "lent a hand -- if you want to call that work" at the farm and went willingly, mostly on weekends. He considered the work good exercise and shed some pounds.
Traficanti testified that he would show vacation days for being at the farm.
"He could give you as many vacation days as he wanted?" Morford asked.
"I guess, he's the boss, yes," Traficanti answered.
The congressman is accused of having three staffers, Traficanti, Richard Rovnak and George F. Buccella, do work at the farm while collecting their federal paychecks. Buccella and Rovnak are no longer on staff.
Far from considering DiBlasio a friend in their working relationship, as Traficanti testified Wednesday, he told the grand jury they had a "hi and goodbye" relationship and that they didn't work together. Only the elite, he told the grand jury, got to go upstairs to DiBlasio's law office.
Tapes ruled out: Judge Wells, meanwhile, issued a ruling that prohibits Traficant from playing four audiotapes for the jury. The tapes are conversations he had with Robin Best (about Henry P. Nemenz), with Harry Manganaro (about A. David Sugar Sr.), with Richard E. Detore and with DiBlasio (both of whom are Traficant's co-defendants).
Sugar, who faked invoices for free work he did at Traficant's farm, testified for the prosecution. Nemenz settled for less than Traficant owed for a pole barn-riding arena.
meade@vindy.com