WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, who is serving time in prison, may soon be temporarily released to testify before Congress about possible political influence over his prosecution.
Ex-Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, pictured in 2007, is serving more than seven years in a Louisiana prison.
The House Judiciary Committee has asked the Justice Department to release Siegelman temporarily so he can testify in May.
A spokeswoman for the committee said Thursday that Siegelman, who is serving more than seven years in a Louisiana prison, would travel to Washington under guard of the U.S. Marshals Service.
She said Committee Chairman John Conyers, a Michigan Democrat, wants to hear directly from Siegelman because lawmakers are having trouble getting information elsewhere, particularly from the Justice Department.
"The chairman has determined it would be appropriate to hear from Mr. Siegelman himself and believes he would have a lot to add to the committee's investigation into selective prosecution," spokeswoman Melanie Roussell said.
The Justice Department had no immediate comment.
Democrats last year began reviewing Siegelman's 2006 corruption conviction as part of a broader investigation into allegations of political meddling at the Justice Department by the Bush administration.
Justice and the federal prosecutors who handled the prosecution have denied any political influence, emphasizing that Siegelman was convicted by a jury.
But critics, including about 50 former state attorneys general, have called for a review and said the case raises a number of questions.
more:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/03/27/house.siegelman.ap/
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