Corruption trial jury begins to take shape; Dimora's attorneys wait for appeal ruling

AKRON, Ohio - More than 60 people will return to federal court on Friday as possible jurors in the latest trial of the largest corruption probe in Cuyahoga County history.

At 6:15 p.m. Thursday, U.S. District Court Judge Sara Lioi called attorneys into her chambers to review the list. The judge had a count of 67, but one of the attorneys thought it was 66.

Former county commissioner Jimmy Dimora faces bribery, conspiracy and other charges, along with co-defendant Michael Gabor, former auditor Frank Russo’s employee.

Judge Lioi wanted at least 50 people in the jury pool for the next phase of jury selection, which will be attorney challenges. If that is accomplished on Friday, the trial could begin as scheduled on Monday. It was a long day of questioning for 51 people called to the federal courthouse in a second wave of jury interviews.

Several jurors were excused for a variety of reasons Thursday, from having airline reservations to health conditions, and from work situations to knowing one of the defendant’s families. One person even admitted to researching the case after filling out the jury questionnaire. There will be 12 jurors and six alternates.

The federal corruption investigation is the largest in Cuyahoga County history. News coverage after federal agents raided the offices and homes of county leaders made headlines for months.

Most potential jurors questioned Thursday had heard Dimora’s name through news coverage. One potential juror was dismissed because the person had known Gabor from when his family owned Gabor's Dunham Fast Check, on Dunham Road in Maple Heights.

 Another juror stated he had watched a news report the night before on NewsChannel5 about the federal trial.

“Do you understand if you’re selected as a juror you can’t listen to any news reports?” asked Judge Lioi. That person was then promptly dismissed.

Another potential juror told the court she researched the case after filling out the questionnaire. That’s in violation of court order to a potential, yet it caused some chuckles in the courtroom, including from the judge. The judge was not laughing at the absence of three potential jurors.

As proceedings got under way Thursday morning, Judge Lioi said one woman notified court officials she was not coming back on Friday morning as requested, apparently finished with her involvement in the voir dire. Attempts to reach her by phone were unsuccessful. Two other potential jurors also were not responding to the court’s order to appear. The judge said the court would address the conduct of these three jurors at a later time.

The jury will have a lot of evidence to consider. U.S. attorneys have a list of 139 potential witnesses, FBI wiretap phone conversations and hundreds of other exhibits. 

Gabor’s witness list was filed by defense attorneys, and it includes Judge Anthony Celebrezze, former Cuyahoga County Commissioner Timothy Hagan, Mayor of Bedford Heights Samuel Alai, former coworkers, former customers of his family’s former store, Gabor’s mother and others.

Dimora’s list had not yet been filed as of late Thursday afternoon. His attorneys, however, were waiting for a ruling from the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. Dimora’s defense argued their client was in danger of double jeopardy because of another federal indictment. The defense also argued jury selection should be postponed until a ruling is made. As of late Thursday, no ruling on either filing had been released.

Earlier in the day, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann Rowland asked Judge Lioi to address the late filings in Cincinnati, saying prosecutors were delayed in getting information from the defense. Defense counsel agreed to provide prosecutors with hard copies of filings in a reasonable time after they are filed.

When the trial gets under way, there also are 71 people whose names could be brought up during court proceedings. A list of 36 organizations and entities was also presented for potential jurors during the interviews to identify potential conflicts. Names on the lists include a wide range of local and county government workers and former elected leaders.

If a jury is seated by Friday, the trial will start on Monday, and it’s expected to take up to three months.