Latest news with #HealthSouth
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Richard Scrushy alleges bombshell evidence in fraud case would exonerate him
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WIAT) — Richard Scrushy and former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman were convicted of fraud in 2006. Today, Scrushy is asking for a pardon, or for his case to be overturned. He said prosecutors acted with misconduct in his case. 'This is the affidavits,' Scrushy said, holding up a file folder. 'The sworn testimony. I've got it right here. And it states who was in the meetings… they were in the courtroom.' The former HealthSouth CEO claimed prosecutors withheld evidence that would have led to his acquittal. That evidence includes testimonies heard by the prosecution, but not provided to defendants- or the judge. Scrushy said his lawyers would've subpoenaed these witnesses in the case. 'These are people who have absolute truth of what went on,' he explained. 'And they are witness to the fact that I did not do anything wrong, and neither did Siegelman. Those people would have testified in front of that jury. And I can tell you right now if they had been there, it would have changed the outcome.' The U.S. Attorney's office for the Middle District of Alabama said they could not comment at this time. Still standing by her man, Richard Scrushy's wife insinuates Satanic conspiracy in prosecution of former HealthSouth CEO Scrushy said the conviction has marked his family. 'It's hard. They call you a felon,' he remarked. ''Well, he did something…' I didn't do anything wrong. I want this off of me. I want to be able- I want those people to be able to talk to me. I want to be able to meet with people. I don't want any of my family to have to deal with it. I've got aunts, and uncles and cousins. And my brother, and other people that are having to live with this.' Scrushy said it's also kept him from making a living. 'Let me tell you. It's time to get this behind us. We've lived under this cloud long enough,' Scrushy said. 'The prosecutors have had their fun- they've got their promotions. It's time now for them to pay their dues.' Scrushy said he will be filing a motion to reverse the convictions soon, and he said he'll be reaching out to President Donald Trump's recently appointed Pardon Czar, Alice Marie Johnson, to review his case. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Still standing by her man, Richard Scrushy's wife insinuates Satanic conspiracy in prosecution of former HealthSouth CEO
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WIAT) — From 2003 to 2007, countless photos published in newspapers around the world showed former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy walking to and from courthouses in Birmingham and Montgomery over criminal charges against him as the head of the multi-billion dollar company. More often than not, his wife, Leslie, was right by his side. On Thursday, the former Florida Junior Miss runner-up-turned-entrepreneur-turned televangelist who had stood by Scrushy for so many years as he weathered indictments and criminal trials stood by him yet again in Montgomery as the disgraced businessman sought the U.S. government's help in clearing his name in his 2006 federal conviction on bribery and extortion charges. Richard and Leslie Scrushy were married on June 7, 1997 in a lavish wedding at the former estate of British playwright Noel Coward in Jamaica. It was Scrushy's third marriage, not a year after divorcing his second wife, Karon Brooks. In press reports at the time, guests included Martha Stewart, who reportedly helped plan the wedding, as well as singer Emmylou Harris, who stopped by and sang during the reception. Over the years, between state and federal trials, the Scrushys went through a lot. In the midst of Richard Scrushy's first trial in Birmingham, he and his wife began hosting 'Viewpoint with Richard and Leslie Scrushy,' a half-hour Christian talk show on local television. As the daughter of a Methodist minister, Leslie Scrushy knew how to wax poetic about God and often hosted the show herself when her husband was in court or awaiting trial. More than that, Leslie was Scrushy's rock. 'Leslie Scrushy reviewed FBI statements, questioned strategy and offered insight into how the jury viewed testimony,' reporter Janet Guyon wrote in a profile of her in The Washington Post in 2006. 'She led prayers before each day in court and dished the dirt on witnesses during recesses.' After Richard Scrushy's conviction in 2006, the wealth that he and Leslie had enjoyed for years was slowly stripped away, from their vacation homes to their boats. According to The Birmingham News, the couple handed over between $10 million to $12 million to HealthSouth to disprove claims that Leslie was hiding her husband's money. This included Mrs. Scrushy being forced to give up $3 million worth of jewelry, as well as $2.3 million in cash and investments. Nevertheless, she continued to keep the faith. 'God is just as good today as he was a year ago yesterday,' Leslie told The Birmingham News following her husband's conviction. 'And he works all things together for good. And so we'll see as time unfolds what good comes out of this day for us.' As Richard Scrushy served his time in a Texas federal prison, Leslie would visit him every weekend she could for five years, trekking 1,200 miles roundtrip each time before eventually moving the family to Texas to be closer to him. During the press conference Thursday, Scrushy looked behind him to Leslie and two of their children, Gracie Beth and Jaden, thanking them for their support. 'I don't know, Leslie, I don't want to ask you to say anything unless you want to, baby,' Scrushy said to Leslie. Initially, Leslie Scrushy shied away from the microphones pointed at her husband. However, within a few minutes, she slowly made her way next to her beleaguered husband to offer her perspective– a spiritual one– on what the last 20 years had done to her family. However, rather than talk about losing their once-luxurious life, Leslie addressed another aspect of what bothered her about her husband's trial, one that insinuated more Biblical evil on the part of the prosecutors than corruption. 'On the day that he was arraigned here and they read the charges, he was charged with Statute 666, so that was very clear to me where this attack was coming from,' she said. Specifically, the statute deals with theft and bribery concerning programs that receive federal funds, but that's not what Scrushy was talking about. During her comments, she emphasized a tie to her husband's case and '666,' known as 'the mark of the beast' in the Bible that signifies the Antichrist. Scrushy didn't stop there. 'And then, when the prosecutors rested their case, they rested their case on June 6 of 2006. 666,' she said. She also drew a Biblical connection with the names of three of the people at the center of her husband's case: U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller, U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr. and Assistant U.S. Attorney. Stephen P. Feaga. 'From my perspective, it was a conspiracy that required Franklin, Feaga and Fuller all to accomplish,' she said. 'If you look at their names, they all start with the letter 'F,' which is the sixth letter of the alphabet, so part of how I made it through was to continue to pray to God, to thank him for all of the blessings that we see.' She said that while going through her husband's whole ordeal was difficult, she was thankful in her faith that led to a better life. 'Was it hard? Yes. Were there so many gut punches? Yes. Did we feel abandoned? Yes. Was it horrific at so many points and turns? Yes, but I am so thankful to my savior, to the father in heaven for getting us through this day and that our children are still doing well and thriving.' With that, Leslie Scrushy stepped back to be with her children. 'Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Leslie,' Richard Scrushy said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Yahoo
Florida man sentenced for Telegram-based bank fraud scheme that targeted Alabama businesses
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) — A Florida man was sentenced for his role in a Telegram-based bank fraud scheme that targeted Alabama businesses, according to U.S. Attorney Prim Escalona on Wednesday. Gabriel Odiot, 21, of Kissimmee, Florida, was sentenced to 60 months in prison and ordered to forfeit $84,000. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in December. Former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy maintains innocence ahead of press conference in Montgomery Thursday The plea agreement and other court documents from August 2022 to March 2023 state Odiot served as an administrator of 'RICH OFF PLAYS,' a Telegram channel dedicated to the negotiation of fraudulent checks. He used the channel to recruit mail carriers, advertise services of bank insiders and to collaborate with others to commit bank fraud. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy maintains innocence ahead of press conference in Montgomery Thursday
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) — Nearly 20 years after Richard Scrushy was indicted and convicted of crimes covering the gamut of money laundering, extortion and bribery during his time as chief executive officer of HealthSouth, he is setting out to clear his name. Scrushy, who served nearly seven years in federal prison after being convicted in 2006, will hold a press conference in front of the Frank M. Johnson federal courthouse in Montgomery, the same courthouse he was convicted in. In an interview with CBS 42, Scrushy said he would detail evidence that prosecutors in the case had lied to the judge about evidence that would have exonerated him. 'What they did was wrong,' Scrushy said. Scrushy was riding high as the head of the multi-billion dollar HealthSouth until 2002, when the Securities and Exchange Commission began investigating him and his company following major stock sales and a $175 million shortfall the company had announced for that quarter. By 2003, he had been charged with 36 counts of fraud, making false corporate reports and making false statements. Scrushy was acquitted of the charges in Birmingham, but months later, a federal grand jury had indicted him on over 30 counts of money laundering, racketeering, extortion, bribery and obstruction of justice. The case also led to the downfall of the last Democrat to serve as governor of Alabama. Specifically, Scrushy was accused of giving $500,000 to former Gov. Don Siegelman for an appointment to the state's certificate of need board. In 2007, Scrushy was found guilty on six counts of bribery, conspiracy to commit wire fraud while Siegelman was convicted on bribery and wire fraud charges, serving seven years in prison. Scrushy was sentenced to nearly seven years in prison, but was released in 2012. He currently lives in Texas. Today, the former CEO remains under legal scrutiny from his former company, now called Encompass Health, who has asked a court to find the $2.8 billion Scrushy was forced to pay them through restitution to its shareholders. The press conference will begin at 11 a.m. Thursday, Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
