Dianne Wilkerson

Wilkerson: Pen not so bad

adamg — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 14:07:46 +0000

The Herald reports Dianne Wilkerson sent them a letter from prison. Food's not the best, but otherwise, she's doing quite well, thank you very much.

Should we be concerned she hasn't updated her Web site since June?

Why the feds never got beyond Dianne Wilkerson and Chuck Turner

adamg — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 14:04:36 +0000

CommonWealth takes a look at Ron Wilburn's grand jury testimony (with transcript provided), discovers the Cooperating Witness proved unable to deliver the goods on anybody else involved in liquor-licensing issues in Boston and the feds, so far, have either failed to follow up or decided there just was no there there.

Speaking of Turner, he is not going silently into that prison term. On Thursday, the night before he's scheduled to show up for his federal incarceration, he'll be on a panel discussion at Northeastern titled Framing the Innocent.

Wilkerson accuses two ministers of snitching on her

adamg — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 11:19:33 +0000

The Dorchester Reporter reports one what could be her last public appearance before she reports to federal prison for her 3 1/2-year sentence.

Wilkerson vows to return

adamg — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 18:26:24 +0000

The Herald talks to the soon-to-be-a-number ex-state Senator, who says she and Chuck Turner were set up and treated more harshly than Tom Finneran and John Tierney's wife. Also vows to return to public service after her 3 1/2-year sentence.

From the State House to the Big House for Wilkerson

adamg — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 23:44:54 +0000

Judge says 3 1/2 years in federal prison is the price for a "Wilkerson tax," the Globe reports.

Wilkerson's lawyers: She's a thief with a heart of gold and no worse than Tommy Finneran

adamg — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 16:11:25 +0000

Ex-Sen. Dianne Wilkerson's lawyers yesterday submitted a brief to a judge considering what to do with her that makes two basic arguments: While she screwed up, her intentions were good, and what she did wasn't all that worse than what Tom Finneran did, and he didn't get any jail time.

Feds want to throw a couple of books at Dianne Wilkerson

adamg — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 23:56:34 +0000

The disgraced former senator is such a serial law breaker she deserves to get a longer sentence than normally called for on her current corruption charges, the US Attorney's office in Boston argued today.

Wilkerson pleaded guilty in June in US District Court in Boston to a variety of charges related to her bribe-fueled, bra-stuffing effort to get more liquor licenses for Boston and permits for a proposed development in Roxbury.

Judge delays Dianne Wilkerson sentencing so news doesn't affect upcoming Chuck Turner trial

adamg — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 18:23:47 +0000

Associated Press reports.

Dianne Wilkerson a felon - again

adamg — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 22:56:54 +0000

As expected, former state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges today. She'll be sentenced Sept. 20 in US District Court.

More details from the FBI.

She pleaded guilty in the early 1990s to income-tax evasion.

Dianne Wilkerson to plead guilty tomorrow

adamg — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 17:17:12 +0000

The Globe reports. Her plea hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. in Courtroom 1 at the Moakley Federal Courthouse before Judge Douglas Woodlock.

No word on the nature of her plea deal with federal prosecutors, who had her arrested in October, 2008 after her indictment on various charges related to alleged bribery and extortion involving Boston liquor licenses. She later had additional charges piled in, including allegedly conspiring with City Councilor Chuck Turner, who faces his own federal corruption trial.

The nature and number of the charges against Wilkerson would be enough to send her away for life if she were to go for trial and be convicted on all of them.

Turner's trial is scheduled for Oct. 12.

Innocent, etc.

Judge wants to know why the feds released those photos of Wilkerson, Turner

adamg — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:39:58 +0000

You know the ones (yes, yes, this one and this one, among others). Associated Press reports a federal judge today basically asked federal prosecutors: Was that really necessary? Turner in particular has used the inclusion of the photos in the initial indictments as an argument against an order barring him from publicly discussing evidence in the case against him.

Grand jury issues more charges against Wilkerson

adamg — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:43:23 +0000

Former state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson was today charged with 23 new counts of mail and wire fraud, the US Attorney's office announced.

That brings the number of federal charges against Wilkerson for allegedly taking federal money from "Cooperating Witness" and local businessman Ron Wilborn to 32. The feds say the number of charges against City Councilor Chuck Turner remains set at five. Each faces the potential of spending the rest of their lives in prison if convicted on all the charges.

The new indictment actually relates entirely to the alleged improprieties with which the two were already charged. Instead, at least in the case of Wilkerson, it simply lays more charges on her. For example, each alleged use of e-mail or the telephone to press the case for Wilborn's club or, later, for development on a particular Roxbury parcel, now carries an individual charge.

Read the entire indictment.

Innocent, etc.

'The dishonorable Chuck Turner'

adamg — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 15:21:08 +0000

Ten minutes of ranting about how guilty Chuck Turner and Dianne Wilkerson are, from I-Power 617 Online:

Call him the Uncooperating Witness

adamg — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 14:38:10 +0000

Adrian Walker scores another interview with Ron Wilborn, the Roxbury businessman who allegedly fed bribes to Dianne Wilkerson and Chuck Turner and who now says he will refuse to cooperate with the feds because he feels he was used to get a pair of black pols (and that he thinks Wilkerson's a crook but that Turner was just unlucky). He tells Walker he's angry no white politicians named in the indictments (and you may recall how prominently Boston Licensing Board Chairman Daniel Pokaski figured in the Wilkerson complaint) have been charged.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Attorney's office says it has evidence against Wilkerson it's yet to produce publicly. The claim comes in a written answer the office filed in reply to Turner's effort to quash the government's effort to keep him from publicly discussing "discovery" evidence turned over to his attorneys:

[T]he discovery material contains a substantial amount of inculpatory evidence against Ms. Wilkerson which has not been the subject of prior pleadings, the selective release of which could inhibit her right to a fair trial.

A federal district court judge will hear arguments on whether to block Turner from speaking about this evidence on Feb. 25; Turner holds a pre-hearing rally at 6:30 p.m. on the 24th at Roxbury Community College.

Rich white folks sure liked Dianne Wilkerson

adamg — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 14:49:47 +0000

The Globe finds more "members of Boston's business elite" who helped the former state senator out even as they sought various favors from state agencies.