Dana Siegelman Statement

Don Siegelman Governor Don Siegelman Former Governor Don Siegelman's daughter Dana released this statement following Scott Pelley's 60 Minutes report.

by Dana Siegelman

Published: Mon, February 25, 2008 - 5:09 am CST Last Updated: Mon, February 25, 2008 - 6:21 am CST

Our family grows more and more outraged with each revelation showing that – for 8 years - my father has been targeted for political reasons -. America should never lose sight of the tragic fact that while the world is just now discovering the corrupt tactics used by the Justice Department in their pursuit of Don Siegelman, our Dad is in a Federal Prison where he has been for eight months. He has not been allowed to be free while he appeals his case and he remains unable to appeal his conviction because there is no trial transcript – even though his trial ended over 600 days ago.

The new revelations by "60 minutes" sit on top of the mountain of evidence already in existence that shows the Justice Department illegally targeted my father. Testimony before the House Judiciary Committee showed that the prosecutors in Alabama were not going to prosecute my father but were told by the Justice Department to do whatever it took to bring Dad down. Adam Zagorin at TIME Magazine reported that during the investigation, prosecutors discovered - and ignored - evidence against a Republican US Senator and Alabama's Republican Attorney General. Most egregious in this episode is the fact that the Justice Department officials and investigators involved in that investigation continued to pursue Dad in the face of their blatant conflicts of interest that should have removed them from the case. In the Siegelman case and in other Alabama cases, affidavits and information has come to light showing that investigators threatened, intimidated, and coached witnesses to incriminate Don Siegelman. The revelations in the "60 Minutes" report cries out for an independent investigation of this case and the immediate release of my Dad.

My family's question to the Congress is "how much evidence will be enough?". The US Attorney apparatus in Alabama is corrupted and only an outside, independent investigation will right this grievous wrong.

Had the US Attorneys in this case followed the rule of law and the code of conduct for US Attorneys, there is no reason to believe that my Father would have ever ended up in a federal courtroom – much less in a prison cell. The question that needs to be answered is did the prosecutors and the Department of Justice violate the law in pursuit of my Dad, and if so why is my father still in prison?

Our family implores the Congress to initiate an independent investigation to once and for all expose the crimes of the Justice Department personnel in Alabama and Washington who had a hand in this grave injustice.

~Dana Siegelman

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rolltide2u Says:

Mon, Feb 25, 2008 at 1:09 pm

Ohhhh please….. let me wipe the tears from my eyes over this horrible treatment being given to Gov.Thief-iegelman…..

Your father is a crook and is exactly where he needs/deserves to be….

Karma is coming back to roost after your father’s treatment of Gov.Hunt and being instrumental in having him thrown out of office.

Please save your whinning for your Mountain Brook neighbors..

churchkey Says:

Mon, Feb 25, 2008 at 9:52 am

Me being a die hard Democrat, can just feel the coruption in Alabama. This state used to be Democratic, how it became Republican I do not know. Wages are low, people can’t make a good living in Alabama, this is the platform of the Republican Party, hold the people down, don’t let them get to rich.

hopeful Says:

Mon, Feb 25, 2008 at 9:18 am

people should hold their comments until all the relevant facts are hopefully disclosed pertaining to this matter.

bethanne Says:

Mon, Feb 25, 2008 at 8:49 am

I feel for Siegelman’s daughter and especially his wife but it all truths be known, he was not the saint they think he is. we all know that being in the public eye is like living in a glass house. well just ask where and what don was doing at the exact time his wife was involved in that horrible accident. or better yet check the Auburn, al area for more information