By Alabama Public Radio
Montgomery, AL – A federal grand jury in Montgomery that's investigating government corruption heard more witnesses Thursday. They included Miller Mathews, who's a former senior vice president with Waste Management. Waste Management got a favorable state tax ruling during former Governor Don Siegelman's administration. Another witness was Jim Sumner, who's executive director of the State Ethics Commission. Sumner says he was asked about fund-raising laws. The grand jury is expected to continue its work next week.
Meanwhile...Two more people have pleaded guilty to charges related to the widening probe of Siegelman's administration. Federal prosecutors have accused developer Lanny Young of paying 65 thousand dollars in bribes to Probate Judge Phillip Jordan. Young and Jordan have now pleaded guilty to charges of bribery and extortion related to a landfill deal where Jordan helped Young negotiate for a permit for the landfill. Jordan resigned as probate judge earlier this week.
And....a state appeals court has also upheld a ruling that denied Young a permit to build another landfill adjacent to the Voters Rights Trail in Lowndes County. In his permit application to the state Department of Environmental Management, Young left off the name of the person who owned the land adjacent to the landfill site. As a result, the location covered in the permit did not correspond with the legal description of the property.