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Jury selection begins in Schmitz trial - Legislator is 1st to stand trial in two-year probe
The Birmingham News, Tuesday, August 19, 2008 KIM CHANDLER News staff writer

DECATUR - Jury selection began Monday in the fraud trial of state Rep. Sue Schmitz, a teacher-turned-legislator who is accused of taking $175,000 in pay from the state's two-year college system for work she never performed.

Defense lawyers and prosecutors questioned a pool of about 75 potential jurors about their backgrounds for more than four hours Monday. They are expected to pick a jury today.

>> Read more at Alabama News Page

Schmitz fraud trial begins today - Legislator charged with bilking system of $175,000
The Birmingham News, Monday, August 18, 2008 KIM CHANDLER News Staff Writer

MONTGOMERY - State Rep. Sue Schmitz, a 63-year-old teacher turned lawmaker, goes on trial today on charges she bilked $175,000 from the state's two-year college system for work she never performed.

The Democrat from the Madison County town of Toney is the first legislator to stand trial in the long running probe of Alabama's two-year college system. While Schmitz is the only defendant listed for the trial set for 10 a.m. in Decatur, the case will also put the culture of Montgomery politics on the stand, said William Stewart, political science professor emeritus at the University of Alabama.

A Birmingham News analysis found that almost one-third of state legislators who served between 2002 and 2006 were tied to the two-year college system through their own jobs, their close relatives' jobs or their businesses. Some worked for their paychecks. Others' work records were questionable.

>> Read more at Alabama News Page

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