Former Arkansas judge Mike Maggio released from federal prison

KUAR | By Debra Hale-Shelton/ Arkansas Nonprofit News Network

Former Faulkner County Circuit Judge Mike Maggio has been released from federal prison after serving less than half of a 10-year sentence for bribery.

The development is the latest in a long-running and complex criminal case that dates back to 2014 and that has entangled a once-powerful Republican lobbyist, a wealthy nursing home owner, an Arkansas Supreme Court justice and others. Maggio was accused of reducing the amount of money a jury awarded in a 2013 civil case he presided over as a judge and expecting campaign donations in return.

Maggio, 60, was freed Wednesday, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons’ website. Since he was first incarcerated on July 19, 2017, he has been held in facilities in Kentucky, Atlanta and other undisclosed places.

https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/local-regional-news/2021-10-23/former-arkansas-judge-mike-maggio-released-from-federal-prison

Brian Chilson/Arkansas Nonprofit News Network

Former Faulkner County Circuit Judge Mike Maggio leaving the federal courthouse in Little Rock after his sentencing in 2016.

Former Arkansas Lawmaker To Face Retrial On Federal Bribery Charges

By DEBRA HALE-SHELTON/ ARKANSAS NONPROFIT NEWS NETWORK

Federal prosecutors plan to retry former lobbyist and political fundraiser Gilbert Baker on bribery and other charges after a mistrial earlier this month.

On Aug. 12, a jury on its fifth day of deliberations acquitted Baker, a former state senator from Conway and former chairman of the Republican Party of Arkansas, of one count of conspiracy. The jury deadlocked on eight other charges, including one count of bribery and seven of wire fraud.

In its notice to the court Thursday, the U.S. attorney’s office stated only that it intended to retry Baker and did not elaborate on what may have led prosecutors to that decision. The office had earlier sought and been granted permission to interview jurors who heard from the first trial who were willing to discuss the matter. Such interviews could have given prosecutors information on how jurors were divided on the case and why.

https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/post/former-arkansas-lawmaker-face-retrial-federal-bribery-charges

Gilbert Baker (right) and his attorney, Blake Hendrix, exit the U.S. courthouse in Little Rock during Baker’s first trial.

CREDIT BRIAN CHILSON

Defense Focuses On Disgraced Judge’s Credibility As Baker Bribery Case Goes To Jury

By DEBRA HALE-SHELTON/ ARKANSAS NONPROFIT NEWS NETWORK

Jurors in the bribery trial of former lobbyist Gilbert Baker went home for the weekend after hearing closing arguments and deliberating less than two hours Friday afternoon.

Deliberations will resume Monday morning in U.S. District Court in Little Rock. Jurors have endured two weeks of testimony, more than a little legal jargon, and two coronavirus scares that sent one former juror and a prosecutor home with the virus and led to all trial participants being tested for it.

Baker, a former chairman of the Republican Party of Arkansas, is charged with bribery, wire fraud and conspiracy. He is accused of being the middleman in an alleged plot in 2013 to bribe former Faulkner County Circuit Judge Mike Maggio on behalf of Michael Morton, a wealthy nursing-home owner and campaign financier from Fort Smith.

https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/post/defense-focuses-disgraced-judge-s-credibility-baker-bribery-case-goes-jury

Defendant Gilbert Baker exits the U.S. courthouse on Friday afternoon.

CREDIT BRIAN CHILSON / ARKANSAS NONPROFIT NEWS NETWORK

Doctors and Nurses Say COVID-19 Is Stretching Healthcare System to Its Limits

The Arkansas Nonprofit News Network recently surveyed nurses and doctors about what they are experiencing as COVID-19 cases continue to climb in Arkansas. The report chronicles the present situation and their concerns for the future.

https://www.kuaf.com/post/doctors-and-nurses-say-covid-19-stretching-healthcare-system-its-limits