Evidence under seal in Warnock trial

Evidence the U.S. Attorney’s Office plans to use in its federal bribery and wire fraud case against former Madison County Engineer Rudy Warnock has been sealed by the court. 

U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate ruled last week on a motion made earlier this fall by the U.S. Attorney’s Office to put exhibits under restricted access.

“The motion and exhibits referenced above contain detailed factual summaries and actual evidence,” the motion states. “The government is requesting the Court’s permission to file this motion and the exhibits thereto under restricted access to avoid any pre-trial publicity of evidence that may taint potential jurors.”

Warnock, who is on trial with former Canton Municipal Utilities Chair Cleveland Anderson, is set to stand trial on June 9, 2025. Anderson was indicted on bribery charges.

The case has been continued a dozen times. 

Last week, Wingate filed a scheduling order outlining deadlines leading up to the trial, with initial motion deadlines on March 10.

Warnock was indicted in 2021 on federal bribery and wire fraud charges concerning his work at CMU. Anderson, along with Canton aldermen Eric Gilkey and Andrew Grant, were also indicted on bribery charges. 

Warnock is alleged to have gifted cash, football tickets, and concert tickets in exchange for engineering contracts with the city of Canton and CMU.

One person set to testify in the case for the U.S. Attorney is current Madison County Board Attorney Mike Espy, according to motions filed by the feds.

Espy, who served as board attorney during Warnock’s tenure as Madison County Engineer, became CMU’s general counsel after the pair was fired in 2016 when three new supervisors were elected.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is also seeking to make Grant’s 2019 conviction for conspiracy to commit voter fraud inadmissible because it could cause “unfair prejudice.”

Grant and Gilkey have both pleaded guilty to their roles and are expected to be witnesses for the prosecution. 

Another motion filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office seeks to stop the defense from attempts at jury nullification by arguing that “other public officials and businesspeople have engaged in similar behavior” as that was “how business was typically done in Canton.” 

The same motion also seeks to exclude evidence of prior good acts, saying the defendants should not be able to invoke acts of good conduct in the community. 

Another motion filed seeks to admit “other acts” evidence into the case against both Warnock and Anderson. 

Two prior acts against Warnock date back to the 2013 Canton municipal elections when Grant ran for the first time as an alderman. 

The prosecution says in the same year Warnock purchased lunches for Grant’s poll workers and provided transportation for voters on his behalf.

As for Anderson, the prosecution said he made attempts to have his wife and other family members hired at CMU and for his role in an alleged murder-for-hire scheme. 

Warnock and Anderson’s attorneys filed motions in opposition to the U.S. Attorney’s requests. The court has not ruled on either side, according to the docket.

The case dates back to December 2021, when a federal grand jury indicted the four. The indictments were sealed until November 2022. 

Warnock had served as the county engineer since the early 2000s, rising up from assistant county engineer. He was finally removed in January 2016 when three new supervisors were elected. 

His tenure was riddled with controversy throughout the years. Questionable projects included Sulphur Springs Park and a $1.2 million airport study for the Madison County Economic Development Authority. 

Warnock, who had billed the county tens of millions of dollars over the years, quickly found work in Canton and, eight months after being ousted from the county, had billed CMU $1.15 million for work. 

His tenure at CMU was also riddled with controversy. The chair at the time was ousted after alleging corruption. 

Two months after Warnock’s hire, the CMU board ousted the general manager and increased the overall operating budget by $540,000 to nearly $13 million. He then coordinated with the CMU board to declare a sewer emergency and discussed floating a bond upwards of $45 million to address the city’s needs. 

Warnock was fired in late 2016 and sued CMU for $6.3 million. A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit.