On Monday, Birmingham mayor Larry Langford was busted by the feds for bribery and fraud in connection with a multibillion-dollar sewer bonding that has caused the county in which Birmingham is seated to end up in near bankruptcy.
Langford, Montgomery investment banker Bill Blount and lobbyist Al LaPierre were charged in the 101-count indictment. The charges also include money laundering and filing false tax returns.
Langford is accused of receiving $230,000 in bribes from Blount, some of them routed through LaPierre, to influence the bond deals while Langford was president of the Jefferson County Commission. Blount's firm made $7.1 million in fees from the bond work.
The three men have denied any wrongdoing.
Langford is alreday named in a federal civil lawsuit for allegedly violating the civil rights of a gay pride group, Central Alabama Pride. The mayor barred city workers from hanging gay pride related banners on city property, which apparently is a violation of rights. Other organizations routinely hang their banners.
The group said in the suit that Langford subjected the group to religious discrimination in violation of the First Amendment and freedom of speech in violation of the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause
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Langford refused to sign a gay pride proclamation that was passed by city council in May and said at the time he would deny the group a parade permit.
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He still says he opposes gay pride celebrations and signing gay pride proclamations, but denies that he discriminates.
What a moron.
Story from here.
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Another one bites the dust.
Now, if it comes out that he was also soliciting sex from male prostitutes while abridging civil rights...