Oct. 01--Defense attorneys for Aaron Schock shot back at prosecutors Wednesday and decried an "ill-defined and seemingly never-ending investigation" of the former congressman.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Bass asserted in mid-September that Schock had "deceptively refused" to comply with his subpoena. In a 23-page court filing Wednesday, Schock's lawyers said their client was "publicly vilified" by the "shocking" claim made by Bass.
Mark Hubbard, a spokesman for the McGuire Woods law firm, which is handling Schock's defense, said in a statement that followed the filing: "Our response has been the polar opposite of deceptive, and any effort by the U.S. attorney to make such an unwarranted accusation does not serve the public interest."
The two sides have been squabbling for months over what documents Schock must turn over to the government.
The Peoria Republican was subpoenaed March 31, the day he resigned from Congress amid allegations of improper use of campaign and tax dollars and questions about travel, real estate deals and ties to donors. A federal grand jury has been hearing the case since April.
Schock has turned over 10,730 financial records and made 2,944 others available to a judge to review privately before deciding whether prosecutors get them. Seventy-two documents have been described on a log for U.S. District Court Judge Sue Myerscough in Springfield to review to determine if they may be withheld, defense lawyers said.
Attorney-client privilege and other considerations should keep some records out of the hands of prosecutors, the defense said.
Bass had said the defense has withheld emails between Schock and congressional staffers, his campaign treasurer, his friends and a sister.
The judge on Tuesday said the defense on its own could tell her why it considered some documents privileged. Prosecutors opposed to that happening without both sides present.
Schock, who entered Congress in 2009, came under scrutiny after a Washington Post story Feb. 2 about his "Downton Abbey"-style office redecoration. Rep. Darin LaHood now holds his old seat in the state's 18th Congressional District.
kskiba@tribpub.com
