In an unusual legal twist, top state lobbyist Bruce C. Bereano is trying to use the comments of jurors who convicted him of mail fraud last week to overturn their verdict.
Bereano's attorneys filed a motion for acquittal yesterday in U.S. District Court in Baltimore, arguing that jurors didn't convict him because they thought he broke the law, but because they didn't like the way he did his job.
"The verdict against Mr. Bereano was rendered against the perceived immorality of certain lobbying practices rather than the legality of the specific charges of fraud upon named lobbying clients," wrote M. Albert Figinski, Bereano's attorney.
To support the argument, the defense culled critical post-trial comments jurors made about Bereano and the lobbying profession in The Sun and the Washington Post.
Arguing that bias was involved, Bereano's attorneys cited the words of Baltimore juror Patricia Yarrington, who told The Sun: "If the government was cleaned up a bit, you wouldn't need so many lobbyists. I don't think you need any of them. They're not out for the little people. They're out there to save the companies [who hire them] money."
Mrs. Yarrington denied yesterday that she was biased against ++ lobbyists. She said her view of them had nothing to do with the conviction.
"I, frankly, didn't make up my mind until the last day," she said. "I was on the edge."
Instead, she said the prosecution's closing argument -- and the paper trail it presented -- ultimately convinced her of the defendant's guilt. "I'm surprised that he's using the jurors as an excuse," she said.
The jury convicted Bereano of tricking his clients into paying for more than $16,000 in illegal campaign contributions to Maryland politicians. Bereano, who has earned as much as $1 million a XTC year as the state's top lobbyist, was known for lavishing &L; legislators with flowers, sports tickets and expensive meals.
Abe Dash, a former federal prosecutor and University of Maryland law professor, said motions based on jurors' comments are not unheard of in highly publicized cases. He doubted, though, that the tactic would work in this one.
Mr. Dash said judges shy away from probing the minds of jurors because it could inhibit the deliberative process. "It would sort of be like having a microphone in the jury room," he said.
However, Bereano's attorneys also argued in their motion that there was insufficient evidence to convict the lobbyist.
There, Mr. Dash said, they may have more luck. During the trial, Judge William M. Nickerson called the case "thin" and came close to dismissing it.
Prosecutor Dale P. Kelberman declined to comment on the motion yesterday. "I haven't even seen it," he said.
Judge Nickerson can rule on the request anytime between now and the sentencing date, April 21, Mr. Figinski said.
Bereano faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each of the eight mail-fraud counts on which he was convicted.