Government responds to former Sen. Jon Woods' request to set bribery conviction aside

The Justice Department this week filed its expected objection to Jon Woods’ request that his conviction be set aside in a bribery case involving, among others, kickbacks from state money funneled to Ecclesia College.

Woods has lost his appeal of the 2018 conviction and 15-year sentence and has begun the post-conviction phase of attempting to overturn the verdict with a claim of new evidence and government misconduct.

The government’s response outlines particulars of the case, which included not only the Ecclesia kickbacks but also the hiring of Woods’ then-fiancé and now wife, Christina Mitchell, for a $70,000 job by the health care provider Alternative Opportunities after it received a $1 million state grant from General Improvement Fund money.

Woods contends the government learned some information used against him from information supplied by former Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson, who’s pleaded guilty in the case. Woods contends Hutchinson was “coerced” by the government into revealing confidential attorney-client information. Hutchinson was once paid for legal work by a health care provider whose enterprises included Alternative Opportunities.

Read more: https://arktimes.com/arkansas-blog/2021/06/01/government-responds-to-former-sen-jon-woods-request-to-set-bribery-conviction-aside

It's not a bribe if you are a Republican and take the money.