By FRED SHUSTER | City News Service
In her 17-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer rejected defense arguments that there was no evidence of a quid pro quo arrangement between the politician and Marilyn Flynn, a former head of the USC School of Social Work, who pleaded guilty to a bribery charge. Despite Amram’s insistence that there was no official act taken by the then-supervisor, the meeting’s minutes “show that defendant voted ‘aye’ on the Telehealth extension,” the judge stated. Additionally, the judge found “ample evidence” to support the jury’s finding that Flynn provided benefits to Ridley-Thomas in exchange for his vote.
“This was sufficient to remedy any prejudice that Defendant might have suffered absent the instruction,” the judge wrote, adding in a footnote that she was not convinced that Adkins’ incorrect testimony “would have had any meaningful impact on the result in any event, but, even if it would have, both cross-examination and the corrective instruction certainly eliminated any prejudice.”