9/27/2007 5:00:00 AM EDITORIAL/Hopkins' allegations against Hood valid
State Auditor Phil Bryant this month issued another demand to recover $14 million in attorney fees paid to a longtime friend and major campaign donor of Attorney General Jim Hood.
Hood's Republican challenger Al Hopkins on Monday accused the Attorney General of selling his influence by taking more than $400,000 in campaign contributions from law firms he awarded state contracts to as outside counsel.
Hopkins' claims are justified.
Among other cases, Hopkins has raised the $14 million fee awarded to Hood's longtime friend Joey Langston, who represented the state in the MCI case in which $100 million in overdue taxes was recovered.
Bryant contends, among other things, the law requires the fees to go through the state appropriations process.
Bryant, the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor, began the investigation into the fees more than a year ago, issuing a demand letter to Langston in November 2006.
Bryant wrote Hood on Sept. 10 restating the demand and asking Hood to take action on behalf of the state.
Langston said Monday he filed suit against Bryant asking a bankruptcy court to confirm the award.
That Sept. 10 letter from Bryant to Hood turned up in Langston's hands as Exhibit M in the suit against Bryant, apparently faxed from Mike Moore's law firm on Sept. 17, a week before the suit was announced.
Did Hood leak privileged information from Bryant and tip Langston off? That's a question someone should ask The Mississippi Bar.
In a press release Monday, Hopkins cited the following examples of Hood's alleged influence peddling:
• On Nov. 15, 2005, Jim Hood received $15,000 from an attorney with Bernstein Liebhard & Lifshitz of New York. Their firm received a state contract three months later on Feb. 16, 2006. In return, they contributed to Hood another $15,000 a week after they received the contract (Feb. 23).
• After receiving $25,000 from partners with Bernstein, Litowitz, Berger & Grossman of New York on Feb. 14, 16, and 17, Hood signed over to them three separate state contracts a week later on Feb. 21 and March 14, 2006. The same firm then gave another series of contributions on April 16, 24, 25, and 26, which followed with another contract soon thereafter on May 17, 2006.
• Jim Hood received contributions of $11,500 to his campaign from Schiffrin, Barroway, Topaz & Kessler of Pennsylvania in February 2006, which led to contingency fee contracts immediately following in March and April.
• Likewise, Wolf Popper of New York contributed $15,000 to Jim Hood on Feb. 22, 2006 and received a contingency fee contract just a few weeks later on March 23, 2006.
• On Sept. 19, 2005, Jim Hood signed Baron & Budd of Texas to a contingency fee state contract, which soon led to another $19,200 for Hood's campaign on Nov. 7 and 8.
A theme of the Hopkins campaign is that it's time for Mississippi to "hire a new lawyer." We could not agree more.
In his Neshoba County Fair speech, Hopkins had supporters in the crowd answering his rhetorical questions about Hood with the Donald Trump line: "You're fired!"
Mr. Hopkins raises some valid questions about an office that should be above reproach.
