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UPDATE: Jury selection wraps up in Whitby trial

A federal judge says jurors in Cliffard Whitby's fraud trial will hear a tape of him arguing with Romain Dallemand about $1.2 million that Whitby claims he's owed

MONDAY UPDATE, 6:45 p.m.

Jury selection ended late Monday afternoon for Cliffard Whitby's trial.

8 women and 7 men were chosen to serve on the jury.

The trial will resume Tuesday at 8 a.m.

MONDAY UPDATE, 6 p.m.

Jury selection is still underway for the man accused of bribing former Bibb County School superintendent Romain Dallemand.

Cliffard Whitby is accused of paying Dallemand more than $461,000 in bribes over the course of six years.

On Monday, eight different lawyers questioned potential jurors about how they felt about Dallemand and Bibb County Schools, whether they knew any of the people involved, and more.

They were also asked if they’ve had bad experiences with law enforcement, and whether they’d handled contracts or computers.

The list of possible witnesses is like a parade of county officials, including Mayor Robert Reichert, former Superintendent Steve Smith and school board members.

Dallemand, who was superintendent from 2011 to 2013, has already pleaded guilty to federal tax charges for taking bribes. He is expected to testify against Whitby.

Whitby faces charges of conspiracy, five counts of paying bribes, and money laundering.

A Florida lawyer, Harold Knowles, also faces charges of handling the bribe money between Whitby and Dallemand.

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Jurors in Cliffard Whitby's fraud trial will hear a tape of him arguing with Bibb County's former school superintendent over $1.2 million Whitby says he was owed.

A federal judge this week rejected a defense motion to edit out parts of the tape.

Cliffard Whitby and a Florida lawyer are accused of paying Supt. Romain Dallemand $437,400 in bribes. Their trial is scheduled to start Monday.

RELATED: A six-year conspiracy: Whitby paid Dallemand more than $461K in bribes, indictment says

According to court documents, Dallemand made the secret tape last year after he agreed to cooperate with federal investigators as an informant. Last year, he pleaded guilty to federal tax charges for taking those bribes and is scheduled to testify against Whitby.

RELATED: Former Bibb superintendent pleads guilty to tax evasion, taking $100k bribe

Dallemand was Bibb's superintendent from 2011-2013. Whitby is charged with conspiracy, five counts of paying bribes; and money laundering.

He allegedly paid Dallemand to provide school-district support for the Macon Promise Neighborhood -- a federally funded program aimed at boosting student achievement by improving the quality of life in Macon neighborhoods.

RELATED: Authority links $2 million bogus billing to former chairman Whitby

RELATED: Fraud case may add to Cliffard Whitby's legal problems

Whitby resigned as industrial-authority chairman after being indicted in the bribery case last year.

Knowles, a Tallahassee, Fla. lawyer, allegedly passed the bribes from Whitby to Dallemand.

RELATED: Bibb schools will get $750K settlement in lawsuit against Culver

MEETING OFF THE INTERSTATE

Dallemand's secret tape was recorded more than four years after he left the Bibb County school job.

According to court documents, the conversation happened April 2, 2017, at a restaurant near the Georgia-Florida welcome center on Interstate 75. The two men met so Whitby could deliver $24,000 to Dallemand.

During the conversation, court documents say, "Whitby would often either write on the placemat or point to the various things he had written on the placemat."

But a motion by Whitby's defense lawyers argue that much of it is irrelevant to the bribery case.

'IT IS UNCLEAR'

Parts of the tape are also unintelligible, making it unclear what Dallemand and Whitby are talking about, the lawyers say.

Although Whitby repeatedly talks about $1.2 million that he is owed, the motion says, it's unclear what he's talking about, and there's no apparent connection to the charges against him.

"Are they related to a business transaction wholly unrelated to this case? Are they a reference to a loan? To an investment? It is unclear," Whitby's lawyers write.

They also argue that Whitby was "at a distinct disadvantage," because he didn't know that Dallemand was acting as a government informant and recording the conversation.

"Thus his comments were, needless to say, unguarded," the motion says.

'THE BOYS FROM THE SOUTH'

The two men also refer several times to "the boys from the south," but that is never explained

The discussions about the $1.2 million and the "the boys from the south" would unfairly prejudice the jury against Whitby, and his lawyers asked Judge Marc Treadwell to have them removed from the tape heard by the jury.

But prosecutors' response says that Dallemand "will be able to explain these and other details to the jury."

They write that Dallemand understood "the boy from the south" as a reference to Knowles and his partner.

Their response says the tape will help jurors understand the deal between Whitby and Dallemand, and editing the tape would confuse jurors.

RECORDING DEVICES WILL STAY SECRET

On Tuesday, Judge Treadwell sided with prosecutors, saying jurors should hear the whole tape.

Among other rulings, the judge also decided:

  • That neither side can describe the "covert audio and video recording device(s)" used by Dallemand to record Whitby. Prosecutors say the FBI still uses those devices "in ongoing and future investigations."
  • That the defendants cannot ask family members and friends to stand and identify themselves during the trial. Prosecutors argued that would be prejudicial.
  • That prosecutors can introduce evidence about the Bibb County school's lawsuit against Dallemand, Whitby and others.
  • That defense lawyers cannot argue that past investigation by the Macon-based U.S. Attorney's Office were racially motivated.
  • That parts of Whitby's personal bank records not connected to the case will not be shared with jurors.

Jury selection in the case is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. Monday in U.S. District Court in Macon.

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