Scrushy could see jail for bribery

Nearly one year after being acquitted of criminal charges in a massive accounting scandal at the outpatient services company he founded, a federal jury found ousted HealthSouth Corp. leader Richard M. Scrushy guilty of charges he bribed the former Alabama governor for a seat on a state board that regulates health facilities.

A jury in Montgomery, Ala., on June 29 convicted Scrushy of six counts of bribery, mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Each count carries a maximum penalty of five, 10 or 20 years in prison, though prosecutors declined to specify the total possible penalty. No date was immediately set for his sentencing.

Prosecutors alleged that Scrushy made two disguised payments totaling $500,000 to then Gov. Don Siegelman to obtain a seat on the certificate-of-need review board. According to an indictment, Scrushy, who was then at the helm of the Birmingham, Ala.-based HealthSouth, used that board position to "affect the interests of HealthSouth and its competitors."

Scrushy, who has maintained his innocence, was "shocked" by the verdict and vowed to appeal, according to his spokesman, Charlie Russell.

Siegelman also was convicted of several counts, including bribery and mail fraud, and was facing a prison sentence. Two other former Siegelman aides were cleared of criminal wrongdoing.

The criminal prosecutions have been just a part of Scrushy's legal woes in the wake of the $2.7 billion accounting scandal, which first surfaced in 2003 and led to his ouster from HealthSouth. Though convictions were obtained against 16 other former HealthSouth executives, a jury acquitted Scrushy of criminal wrongdoing in the plot after nearly five months at trial. He still faces a civil lawsuit from the Securities and Exchange Commission and class-action lawsuits from investors.

Those cases could go to trial within the year and could cost him his fortune if they succeed.

Earlier this year, HealthSouth agreed to pay $445 million to settle class-action securities fraud lawsuits brought by investors in the wake of the accounting scandal. Under the agreement, the company did not admit any wrongdoing. Previously, HealthSouth had agreed to pay $100 million to settle an SEC lawsuit stemming from the fraud.