NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A federal jury on Friday convicted a former Tennessee House speaker and his onetime chief of staff in a scheme to win taxpayer-funded mail business from state lawmakers even after scandals drove the two out of political power.
Former Republican Rep. Glen Casada was found guilty of all 19 charges, while his then-chief of staff, Cade Cothren, was found guilty of 17 of 19 charges in a public corruption trial that began in late April.
The current House speaker, Cameron Sexton, helped authorities in the case against his predecessor since taking the job in 2019, he has said. Sexton was among the lawmakers and staffers who testified to the grand jury.
But Sexton was noticeably absent as a witness after prosecutors said they planned for him to testify. The defense sought to draw attention to a political rivalry between Casada and Sexton. Ultimately, the defense declined to call any witnesses. Neither Casada nor Cothren testified. And defense attempts to discuss in front of jurors whether Sexton wore a wire were shut down by the judge.
Casada resigned as House speaker in August 2019 after a no-confidence vote from fellow House Republicans due to swirling scandals, including revelations he exchanged sexually explicit text messages about women years ago with Cothren. Not long before that, Cothren also left his post over those texts and racist texts, coupled with an admission he used cocaine inside a legislative office building when he held a previous job.
