Court upholds racketeering convictions of ex-Ohio House speaker and lobbyist in $60M bribery scheme

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A federal appeals court upheld the racketeering convictions of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and an ex-lobbyist on Tuesday in a $60 million bribery scandal described as the largest corruption scheme in state history.

The unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel of the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati represented a win for the Department of Justice, which had secured the convictions in March 2023 after a yearslong investigation. Householder, a Republican, was sentenced to 20 years in prison, and lobbyist and former Ohio Republican Party chair Matt Borges was sentenced to five years in prison.

Acting U.S. Attorney Kelly A. Norris said the appeals panel’s unanimous decision “affirmed the strength of the government’s evidence, the correctness of the jury instructions, and the fairness of the proceeding.”

Householder was convicted of masterminding a $60 million bribery scheme funded by Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp. to elect allies, secure power, pass a $1 billion bailout of two of its affiliated nuclear plants and then defend the bill, known as House Bill 6, from a repeal effort.

Prosecutors had described Borges’ primary role in the scheme as working to thwart a ballot campaign aimed at repealing the tainted legislation. Specifically, he was accused of paying $15,000 to someone who was helping spearhead the effort in order to get inside information. The referendum ultimately failed to make the ballot.

Scott Pullins, a long-time legal and personal adviser to Householder, called it a “sad and disappointing day” for both men and their families and supporters, and “even a sadder day for constitutional free speech and the rule of law.”

He said in a Substack post that Householder "raised undisclosed, unlimited donations for a 501c4 organization that supported him and his political allies” — just as speakers before and after him have done. “But the federal government singled only Mr. Householder out for prosecution.”

Householder has a couple long shot legal options remaining: He could ask for a review by the full Sixth Circuit, or seek what’s known as certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court, hoping for consideration by the nation’s highest bench. Both types of requests are rarely granted.

A message seeking comment was left for Householder's criminal defense attorney.

Householder's appeal failed on all six claims he brought in hopes of a reprieve. He alleged erroneous jury instructions, insufficient and inadmissible evidence, violations of his right to counsel, judicial bias and that his sentence was unreasonable for the circumstances.

The 65-year-old Householder argued that the government was wrong in describing what he had engaged in as a bribery scheme. Instead, he cast the money that flowed from FirstEnergy into a network of secret dark money accounts that he controlled as legal campaign contributions. Federal prosecutors charged that the money was given to Householder in exchange for the passage of House Bill 6, providing the necessary quid pro quo to make his conduct illegal.

Householder had also faulted U.S. District Judge Timothy Black in his appeal, asserting that he failed to properly instruct the jury that an agreement is necessary to prove bribery and that Householder needed to have agreed he would take action “on a specific and focused question or matter” at the time that agreement was struck.

The judicial panel said all of his claims failed.

Borges’ appeal hinged on three technical points of law. All failed, as well, though he could also ask for review by the full appellate court or the U.S. Supreme Court.

However, Circuit Judge Amul Thapar wrote in a concurring opinion that each of Borges' contentions “raises tricky and unresolved issues in honest services fraud jurisprudence.”

“And here, Borges has a good argument his conduct fell within a murky middle: perhaps objectionable, but not clearly illegal,” he wrote. “Until the Supreme Court revises its caselaw, however, we must follow its precedent.”

Dennis Belli, Borges’ attorney, noted a part of Thapar's concurrence that said "(t)he Tinkerbell strategy — clap if you believe he’s guilty — doesn’t cut it when we think about criminal convictions.”

“'Tinkerbell strategy' aptly describes the prosecution’s use of an alleged violation of a misdemeanor statute in the Ohio Elections Code to obtain a felony racketeering conviction of Borges in federal court,” Belli said, noting that his client denies that the statute even applies to his conduct. “I will be studying the 64-page ruling closely and thoughtfully, and will advise my client regarding his options going forward.”

Bruce Shipkowski contributed to this report from Toms River, N.J.

FILE - Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges participates in a question-and-answer session in Columbus, Ohio, Feb. 11, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Welsh-Huggins, File)

FILE - Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder sits at the head of a legislative session in Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 30, 2019. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Glenn Hall, a Hockey Hall of Famer whose ironman streak of 502 starts as a goaltender remains an NHL record, has died. He was 94.

Nicknamed “Mr. Goalie,” Hall worked to stop pucks at a time when players at his position were bare-faced, before masks of any kind became commonplace. He did it as well as just about anyone of his generation, which stretched from the days of the Original Six into the expansion era.

A spokesperson for the Chicago Blackhawks confirmed the team received word of Hall’s death from his family. A league historian in touch with Hall’s son, Pat, said Hall died at a hospital in Stony Plain, Alberta, on Wednesday.

A pioneer of the butterfly style of goaltending of dropping to his knees, Hall backstopped Chicago to the Stanley Cup in 1961. He won the Conn Smythe Trophy as most valuable player of the playoffs in 1968 with St. Louis when the Blues reached the final before losing to Montreal. He was the second of just six Conn Smythe winners from a team that did not hoist the Cup.

His run of more than 500 games in net is one of the most untouchable records in sports, given how the position has changed in the decades since. Second in history is Alec Connell with 257 from 1924-30.

“Glenn was sturdy, dependable and a spectacular talent in net,” Commissioner Gary Bettman said. “That record, set from 1955-56 to 1962-63, still stands, probably always will, and is almost unfathomable — especially when you consider he did it all without a mask.”

Counting the postseason, Hall started 552 games in a row.

Hall won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 1956 when playing for the Detroit Red Wings. After two seasons, he was sent to the Black Hawks along with legendary forward Ted Lindsay.

Hall earned two of his three Vezina Trophy honors as the league's top goalie with Chicago, in 1963 and '67. The Blues took him in the expansion draft when the NHL doubled from six teams to 12, and he helped them reach the final in each of their first three years of existence, while winning the Vezina again at age 37.

Hall was in net when Boston's Bobby Orr scored in overtime to win the Cup for the Bruins in 1970, a goal that's among the most famous in hockey history because of the flying through the air celebration that followed. He played one more season with St. Louis before retiring in 1971.

“His influence extended far beyond the crease," Blues chairman Tom Stillman said. “From the very beginning, he brought credibility, excellence, and heart to a new team and a new NHL market.”

A native of Humboldt, Saskatchewan, Hall was a seven-time first-team NHL All-Star who had 407 wins and 84 shutouts in 906 regular-season games. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1975, and his No. 1 was retired by Chicago in 1988.

Hall was chosen as one of the top 100 players in the league's first 100 years.

Blackhawks chairman and CEO Danny Wirtz called Hall an innovator and “one of the greatest and most influential goaltenders in the history of our sport and a cornerstone of our franchise.”

“We are grateful for his extraordinary contributions to hockey and to our club, and we will honor his memory today and always,” Wirtz said.

The Blackhawks paid tribute to Hall and former coach and general manager Bob Pulford with a moment of silence before Wednesday night’s game against St. Louis. Pulford died Monday.

A Hall highlight video was shown on the center-ice videoboard. The lights were turned off for the moment of silence, except for a spotlight on the No. 1 banner for Hall that hangs in the rafters at the United Center.

Fellow Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur, the league's leader in wins with 691 and games played with 1,266, posted a photo of the last time he saw Hall along with a remembrance of him.

“Glenn Hall was a legend, and I was a big fan of his,” Brodeur said on social media. “He set the standard for every goaltender who followed. His toughness and consistency defined what it meant to play.”

AP Sports Writer Jay Cohen in Chicago contributed to this report.

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FILE - Glenn Hall, second from left, stands with fellow former Chicago Blackhawks players Stan Mikita, former general manager Tommy Ivan, Bobby Hull, Bill Wirtz and Tony Esposito during a pre-game ceremony at the Chicago Stadium in Chicago, Ill., April 14, 1994. (AP Photo/Fred Jewell, File)

FILE - St. Louis Blues goalie Glenn Hall, top right, is pinned to his net waiting to make a save on a Montreal Canadians shot as Blues' Noel Picard (4) tries to block the puck while Canadiens' John Ferguson (22) and Ralph Backstorm wait for a rebound in the third period of their NHL hockey Stanley Cup game, May 5, 1968. (AP Photo/Fred Waters, File)