Alvin Greene cleared in filing fee investigation

[Shrek]

Source: WMBF News

COLUMBIA, SC (WMBF) - No charges will be filed against Alvin Greene in connection to the U.S. Senate candidate's finances, officials announced Friday.

Greene's campaign finances were questioned by investigators with the State Law Enforcement Division after the unemployed military veteran paid a $10,000 filing fee.

A thorough investigation led officials to find no evidence of wrongdoing, criminal intent or deception to the court when Greene filed as a public defender in 2009.

Agency spokeswoman Jennifer Timmons said SLED determined money spent for Greene's filing fee were of his own, and therefore, no laws were violated in association to his payment to the South Carolina Democratic Party.

Read more: http://www.wmbfnews.com/Global/story.asp?s=12782814&clienttype=printable

[blm]

1. Sure....because unemployed BROKE people show up with $10,000 and file for Senate runs ALL the time

in SC....the Squeaky Clean state.

[totodeinhere]

23. Well, if he had $10,000 he wasn't broke. Over half of the money came from a government check he

got for his separation from the military and over $2,000 came form his income tax return.

[Tx4obama]

34. Alvin Greene never said he was broke. Where'd you get that idea? n/t

[LiberalFighter]

2. I call bullshit!!!

And he paid the filing fee to the SC Democratic Party? I don't believe that either.

[dragonlady]

6. I believe that's the way they do it in South Carolina

When Stephen Colbert was "running" for (president?) he was supposed to submit his filing fee to the Republican Party, IIRC.

[napi21]

3. Thre are times I feel sorry for Greene, but being unemployed & putting out

$10,000 to run for an office the he's VERY unlikely to win! That $10,000 could have gone a long way go his daily support right now.

[onehandle]

5. I suspect a book deal will overcome that 'investment.' nt

[napi21]

7. If it does, it's going to be a very short book~ nt

[onehandle]

13. See: Sarah Palin. nt

[No Elephants]

45. See Al. See Al's Internet porn. See Al run. See Al run for U.S. Senator.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

4. And the South Carolina Dems have no interest in investigating

how there could be more votes than voters!

[Imajika]

8. Best 10k he ever spent in his life...

...and yet so many people fail to understand how and immediately leap to the notion that there is some kind of conspiracy afoot.

The guy wanted his name and picture out in the public domain - he got it. For 10k he is all over TV, will most certainly write some sort of book, be the subject of a few documentaries, etc. Greene will EASILY recoup that 10k and then some.

That said, the criminal charge he got hit with probably screwed it for him quite a lot. Were it not for that, he might be garnering a ton of sympathy vote and support - even right here on DU. Even so, that charge will not result in a serious penalty and he will always be remembered now as Alvin Greene, the man who beat the Democratic insider and faced Jim DeMint. He will be able to play the David v Goliath card for an eternity. Had he not spent that 10k, no one would know who he was and he'd probably just be sitting around his Dad's house burning through the money.

[Angry Dragon]

11. You seem like a well spoken, intelligent person

If you were in his position those things you state could become possible. Have you listened to him, heard him speak and how he forms his sentences?? He makes palin sound like a Rhodes Scholar.
Something is amiss in SC

[LisaL]

42. He also paid the money-which appears to be almost all of the

money he had in that checking account ( I don't know if he has other accounts) but barely campaigns (well I couldn't find any examples of him actually campaigning other then the green campaign fliers he put around). Why and how would he expect to win the primary? It's just strange.

[No Elephants]

44. "He makes palin sound like a Rhodes Scholar. " Not when he was on Olberman..

He couldn't even repeat the short lines his off camera lawyer was feeding him one at a time until he gave it two or three tries. She says stupid stuff, but she manages to spit it out.

Still, if I were in SC, I'd vote for him.

[LisaL]

17. Who even heard of him until he won the primary?

How did he know his name was going to be out in the public domain?

[Tx4obama]

9. Greene made a very good salary in the military.

He was paid more while in the military because he had a four year degree, he was a specialist, and also he got extra pay for being stationed in Korea.
There is no reason not to believe that he saved up $10,000 over all the years he was in the military. He had no wife or children to support.

Also, we don't know what money/savings is considered when asking for a public defender in court.
Perhaps the court doesn't count money that is in a retirement account or some other account?
Or perhaps you can have $10,000 in savings and if you're unemployed you could still qualify for a free public defender?

[Tx4obama]

10. Come on SC, vote for Alvin Greene and boot DeMint out! n/t

[LisaL]

16. Yes, after all, Alvin Greene has a great plan for creating jobs-

he wants action figures of himself made. Now, why didn't all politicians think of that?

[24601]

53. The poll is from June, but Greene is behind by only 37% - so

we'll call this race a toss-up?

[Jamastiene]

12. There was a local news story about him releasing action figures of himself as a hero.

That's how he said he wanted to create jobs.

http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=alvin+greene+action+figures&ei=UTF-8&fr=moz35

This is going to be a wild one.

I liked Lee Mercer, Jr. better though.

[jazzelle]

20. well, he was thinking "outside the box"...

:eyes:

[Shrek]

14. More info

But the real source of the bulk of Greene’s money has turned out to be none other than the U.S. government and the S.C. state government, said SLED director Reggie Lloyd.

“That’s who bankrolled Greene’s entry fee for the primary,” said Lloyd, whose agency worked with 5th Circuit Solicitor Barney Giese in the matter.

Lloyd said SLED investigators had access to all Greene’s checking and savings accounts in Clarendon County.

Those monthly statements showed that Greene had a monthly balance last fall of several thousand dollars in his Bank of Clarendon checking account in Manning, Lloyd said.

Last October, Greene received a $5,843 check from the U.S. Department of Defense in connection with his discharge from the military last year.

“That brought him up to more than $8,000,” Lloyd said.

That checking balance continued into March, when Greene received a federal income tax refund of $2,173 and a state tax refund of $932, Lloyd said.

“At that point, he had more than $11,400 in his account,” Lloyd said.

http://www.thestate.com/2010/07/09/1371362/greene-paid-his-own-filing-fee.html#ixzz0tEZgZ1eE



Read more: http://www.thestate.com/2010/07/09/1371362/greene-paid-his-own-filing-fee.html#ixzz0tEplwiAG

[LisaL]

15. And he spend almost all of the money in his account on filing fee, even though he had no job?

Does he really think he is going to win?

[totodeinhere]

24. It was his choice. I hope that this will shut up the conspiracy theorists around here.

There have been times when I blew almost my entire wad on something. I remember when I bought my first computer it left me with $10 in the bank. But I wanted the computer so I went for it. Sometimes people don't make rational decisions about their money, but it's their money.

[blm]

27. Right,,,because we definitely KNOW that SC GOPS would NEVER sink this low.

All your posts tell me is that you don't know what the GOP is capable of in that state...or...how they are so hardwired into the system that they know they can get away most anything.

[totodeinhere]

28. I didn't say that the GOP isn't capable of pulling off some hijinks. But looking at the facts in

this particular case I don't think so. They looked at his bank account and were able to determine where he got the money, and it was legitimate. We can't convict him on suppositions. As long as there is a plausible explanation for where he got the money, then I don't think there is anything more that can be done about it.

I realize that with all of the mischief that the GOP has pulled off in the past, and I'm sure that they will continue to do it, it is tempting to look for a conspiracy under every rock. But I haven't got to the point where I am that cynical yet. I know that a lot of others here are, but I am not yet. Plus I also believe that Democrats are also capable of monkey business sometimes.

[blm]

32. The problem here is that you BELIEVE what SC 'officials' are telling us in this case.

And I have learned to NOT believe them at all when it comes to political investigations.

[No Elephants]

46. In fairness, we have Democratic Congressmen "smelling elephant dung," not only DUers.

[Tx4obama]

18. and some more info

.... when state agents reviewed Greene's bank accounts, they found an October deposit of nearly $6,000, which was Greene's military exit pay, and about $3,000 deposited early this year from state and federal tax refunds, Lloyd said.

The records matched Greene's story that the 32-year-old candidate, who has been collecting unemployment benefits since he left the military in August, was able to afford the fee because he saved his money and lived frugally.

"He clearly does not have someone paying him. He just decided to take his money and run for U.S. Senate. There's no big conspiracy," Lloyd said.

Greene said Friday that SLED's findings vindicated him.
Story continues below

"It was just as I said: It came from the Army," Greene said Friday. "I'm happy."

Lloyd also wanted to look into whether Greene had misrepresented his financial situation in court. In November, a court-appointed attorney was named to represent Greene on a felony charge of showing obscene Internet photos to a University of South Carolina student.

Court records show Greene reported just over $1,000 in monthly income. Last month, Greene notified the court he had retained a private attorney to represent him.

Greene says he didn't ask for a court-appointed attorney or intend to mislead anyone about his financial situation.

"They just gave me one," he said Friday.

SLED agents listened to a recording of Greene's testimony at a hearing and felt he was honest and didn't try to deceive anyone, Lloyd said.

Full article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/10/alvin-greene-paid-senate-_n_641691.html

[Spazito]

19. So, if he had over 10 thousand in the bank...

did he not commit fraud when he cried broke and received a public defender in his upcoming court case?

"In March, Greene paid a $10,400 filing fee to get on the ballot. But just four months before that, when he was charged with showing obscene images to a woman, Greene qualified for representation by a public defender— which in South Carolina requires an "affidavit of indigency" to prove that you can't afford your own attorney.

Greene was charged in November with showing a University of South Carolina student pornography on his laptop in a school library. According to case information from the South Carolina Judicial Department, he is being represented by a Richland County public defender. For Greene to qualify for that representation, Richland County Assistant Solicitor Joanna McDuffie told Yahoo! News, he would have had to complete a questionnaire attesting to his income and assets."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ynews/20100610/pl_ynews/ynews_pl2523_3

[Shrek]

21. The investigators say no fraud occurred

From one of the links posted earlier:

Lloyd said SLED investigators also concluded Greene did not lie to a Richland County magistrate last November when he signed papers indicating he was indigent and needed a public defender to be appointed for him at taxpayer expense to fight a felony obscenity charge.

Lloyd said investigators talked to magistrate’s court personnel and reviewed a tape of the bond hearing.

It was clear, Lloyd said, little screening was done to check whether Greene had assets in the bank that might have allowed him to pay for his own lawyer. It also was clear that there was not enough evidence to conclude that Greene had deliberately misrepresented his financial situation, Lloyd said.

“The only thing they asked him from the bench was how much money do you make per month. They didn’t ask him if he had any other money,” Lloyd said. “There’s nothing in the record that he (Greene) tried to defraud anybody.”

Court personnel told SLED they were “busy” that day, Lloyd said.

“He certainly didn’t do anything to defraud them,” Lloyd said. “They just didn’t bother to ask him.”

[Spazito]

22. Interesting...

Does he continue to warrant a public defender now seeing as he spent his money on his candidacy? I wonder how many others have gotten public defenders when they would not have qualified if the courts had done their due diligence?

[totodeinhere]

26. He has a private attorney now.

I am only speculating, but I imagine that his new found celebrity would be enough for a private attorney to agree to take on his case pro bono.

[totodeinhere]

25. Even if that's true that's a separate issue and has nothing to do with whether or not he broke

any election laws.

[changed4thebetter]

29. He seems like he's sincere

I honestly don't see this guy as anything but a citizen who said "why not?" and decided to give it a shot. Good for him. Maybe if we had more people like him we'd have better (more) choices and wouldn't be so polarized and (over and over again) wrong...

[IndianaGreen]

30. Al Capone was sincere too

Greene is a crook!

[changed4thebetter]

33. Want to list everyone you know that is sincere?

Who cares about Al Capone? Is he running? If you have proof that Greene is a crook you should present it. Save us all a lot of time. Until then you are offering uninformed opinion. Uninformed opinion is free and available wherever you look.
If a common, everyday citizen can't drop his money on the table and say "I'm in" without being harassed then we have given up hope for any real, legitimate representation. Not saying he's "The Man". Just saying he has every right to find out if he is or not.

[Shrek]

35. A crook?

Are you talking about the obscenity accusations (for which he has not been convicted)?

Or is there some other crime you believe he has committed?

[The Croquist]

36. Why do you keep posting facts?

Shrek / Tx4obama

Facts are the enemy of a conspiracy theory and this is a great conspiracy theory.

So what if there is a clear money trail showing where he go the money from and that it had been in his checking account well before he filed? Obviously the Republicans planned this years ago just like Obama's father faked his Hawaiian birth almost 50 years ago so that his son could run for president one day. Facts don't matter!

So what if he didn't ask for a public defender but was offered one? The fact that a government employee simply assumed he didn't have any savings PROVES that there was a conspiracy. After all, in my 53 years I've never known anyone to ever screw up.

We KNOW the GOP was behind this!

[rbrnmw]

51. I know my fair share of democrats here

No democrat I know or the other democrats they know voted for Greene we ALL voted for Vic Rawls I KNOW Demint is behind this I KNOW it

[catnhatnh]

31. Horsecock...

If he had thousands of dollars and applied for a public defender it IS fraud."No evidence of wrongdoing or criminal intent or deception"???
What does one have to do to be guilty???Did the judge somehow exempt his assets???

[IndianaGreen]

37. That would be fraud, hiding his assets when he applied for public defender

The issue is where did the ten grand come from originally?

[Shrek]

38. He didn't hide his assets

No one ever bothered to ask him about it.

Lloyd said investigators also concluded that Greene did not lie to a Richland County magistrate last November when he signed papers indicating he was indigent and needed a public defender to be appointed for him at taxpayer expense to fight a felony obscenity charge.

Lloyd said investigators talked to magistrate's court personnel and reviewed a tape of the bond hearing.

It was clear, Lloyd said, little screening was done to check whether Greene had assets in the bank that might have allowed him to pay for his own lawyer. It also was clear that there was not enough evidence to conclude that Greene had deliberately misrepresented his financial situation, Lloyd said.

"The only thing they asked him from the bench was how much money do you make per month. They didn't ask him if he had any other money," Lloyd said. "There's nothing in the record that he (Greene) tried to defraud anybody."

Court personnel told investigators they were "busy" that day, Lloyd said.

"He certainly didn't do anything to defraud them," Lloyd said. "They just didn't bother to ask him."

And the ten grand has also been documented.

In its investigation, Lloyd said, the law enforcement division had access to all Greene's checking and savings accounts.

Those monthly statements showed that Greene, 32, had a monthly balance last fall of several thousand dollars in his Bank of Clarendon checking account in Manning, Lloyd said.

Last October, Greene received a $5,843 check from the U.S. Department of Defense in connection with his discharge from the military last year.

"That brought him up to more than $8,200," Lloyd said.

Greene continued having a checking account balance of about that amount into March, when Greene received a federal income tax refund of $2,173 and a state tax refund of $932, Lloyd said.

"At that point, he had more than $11,400 in his account," Lloyd said.

http://www.kentucky.com/2010/07/09/1343312/sc-senate-candidate-greene-paid.html

[Name removed]

39. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[LisaL]

41. Man's idea to create jobs is to have action figures of himself made.

So, pardon me, if I don't find it a good idea to support his candidacy.

[Name removed]

48. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Blue_Tires]

40. Fraud... Publicity-seeking fraud hoping to cash in...

http://www.wmbfnews.com/Global/story.asp?S=12790274

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/11/us/politics/11greene.html?_r=1


For those of you convinced this political equivalent of the "Balloon Boy Hoax" is on the level and legit (and for all I know about southern politics it could well be)... Doesn't it bother you that Greene's politics and ideas are unknown, outside of Ron Paul-esque noncommittal vague buzzwords like "jobs" and "economy" with no substance behind them??

Why haven't these news stories been able to track down any honest-to-god Green supporters for a comment?

After winning the primary, why is he so nonchalant about fundraising and campaigning for the actual race??

AND what other fun details are going to come out about his past? We already know about the obscenity charge and involuntary discharge from the Army; his military record probably has a goldmine of dirt...

Clearly he's no threat to the GOP, who are happy spectators while this assclown playing with matches burns down the forest in Nov.

[LisaL]

43. His idea to create jobs is to make action figures of himself

wearing his army uniform and such.

[No Elephants]

47. "I'd vote for a yellow dog before I'd vot e for a Republican." Just sayin'

[BreweryYardRat]

49. *kick*

Mainly because I'd like to read the whole thread and I'm too tired right now to fiddle with the topic address.

[Name removed]

50. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[robcon]

52. I think your response, whistler1562, is disgraceful

There was not a hint of racism on the board, until your post.

[No Elephants]

54. Could not find the profile of whistler 1562, but did find 4 other whistler profiles, all suspicious.