Here’s the tally on sentences in the Scruggs saga so far.

Dickie Scruggs - 7.5 years (Scruggs I & II)
Joey Langston - 3 years
Zach Scruggs - 14 months
Steve Patterson - 2 years
Tim Balducci - 2 years

According to the article, Balducci could not pay a fine. What happened to the seven million he got from the World Com deal?

Will they actually have to serve the 24 months?

dixie68:  Interesting question.  Wonder if the whole $14M was paid to the Langston Law Firm?  If you look back at assorted transcripts, you’ll find the now infamous DUI case that, while not relevant to scruggs I or II, is nevertheless woven throughout the Tim and Joey Spectacle.  According to B., it wouldn’t be the first time L. didn’t pay him!  On the other hand, the Auditor’s going all out to retrieve every dime of that $$.  Can’t say as I’ve seen anything to suggest it’s been frozen pending the outcome of that lawsuit.

I know I’ve been AWOL a while, but is this news to anyone else besides me?

<block>“The judge said he was confused why Patterson was receiving $80,000 a month from the 1990s tobacco settlement that brought Scruggs fame and fortune.”</block>

Hmm.  80 times 12 equals . . . $960,000 a freakin year???? Holy crap on a cracker!  Yeah, yeah, I know that later on the article says this has now been reduced to only $20,000 per month, but Jiminy Christmas this means Patterson was in on the same scam as P.L.  No wonder he looks so damned smug in the CL pic.  I really don’t like the kissy smoochy crap going on with Bob Norman (particularly following Norman’s sweetness two days ago with Delaughter), and keep in mind this is one more unbelievably bad association for Mike Moore.  Moore was the one who made Patterson resign from the State Auditor’s office for corruption, Moore gave Dickie the green light to sue big tobacco on behalf of the state, and Moore must have known that somehow Patterson was involved with Dickie.  Utterly sickening.

RFAC, dead on.

I know there are a lot of clenched backsides as to who Balducci and Patterson could be testifying in front of the grand jury against in late March.

I can only really think of two people that make sense.  Maybe three.  All of them would be MSM bombshells.

While personally witnessing the sentencing process on Friday in rapt attentiveness and struck by its solemnity, I was overwhelmed by the stark contrast between the first defendant and second defendant in the Scruggs I matter.

Steve Patterson acted like it was just another day in the political world. He said - but did not evidence - he was deeply embarrassed and humiliated (about what was never quite clear other than what people were saying about him). His conduct afterwards reflected a callousness toward the entire matter. 

Tim Balducci - on his own behalf and without the assistance of counsel - confessed to his wrongdoings, apologized to the innocent people hurt by them and declared that he would spend - as he has sought to so do since being confronted on the matter - the rest of his earthly life trying do what is right. In fact, the most favorable comments came not from his mouth but rather that of the prosecutor. The scars of this matter visibly weighed upon him - lighter, older, humbler. His family has obviously been deeply affected.

What a contrast !

In resopnse to Dixie68 re: the Worldcom fee, Balducci was not a Partner in the Langston Law Firm.  He first practiced law with Langston when the firm was Langston, Langston, Michael and Bowen.  Michael is Ronald Michael, a close associate of Langston and mentioned as a possible U. S. Attorney for the ND of MS.  Richard Bowen was appointed Circuit Judge by Governor Musgrove at the request of Langston but was later unseated in an election.  Balducci left the LLM&B firm and moved to Oxford eventually returning to the Langston Law Firm. The Worldcom suit was originally brought to Attorney General Hood by a Louisiana law firm that William Quinn was associated with.  The case was given to Langston by Hood and Quinn came to work in the Langston Law firm.  Quinn is now listed as of Counsel by Martindale-Hubble with the firm of McRaney & Montagnet, Jackson, MS.