bribery conviction reversed

A federal appeals court Tuesday reversed the bribery conviction of former Florida Senate President W.D. Childers, who was known as the Legislature’s “banty rooster” because of his feisty personality and short stature. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta issued the 2-1 ruling. The majority found Childers’ trial judge erred by excluding evidence that could have impeached the credibility of the prosecution’s star witness. The ruling came nearly a year after Childers, 76, was…

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A federal appeals court Tuesday reversed the bribery conviction of former Florida Senate President W.D. Childers, who was known as the Legislature’s “banty rooster” because of his feisty personality and short stature. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta issued the 2-1 ruling. The majority found Childers’ trial judge erred by excluding evidence that could have impeached the credibility of the prosecution’s star witness. The ruling came nearly a year after Childers, 76, was…

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