Ex-HealthSouth CEO Scrushy Pleads Not Guilty
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Fired HealthSouth Corp. (search) CEO Richard Scrushy (search) pleaded not guilty Friday to federal charges accusing him of participating in a government corruption scheme with former Gov. Don Siegelman (search).
A federal grand jury on Wednesday indicted Scrushy on two counts of bribery and one of mail fraud. He is accused of providing $500,000 to Siegelman's unsuccessful 1999 campaign for a statewide lottery to benefit public education in return for an appointment to a state hospital regulatory board.
In court, Scrushy entered a plea of "absolutely not guilty," and outside the courtroom, he told reporters, "None of it is true." He said HealthSouth gave a $250,000 donation to the lottery campaign as part of its "civic duty."
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On Thursday, Siegelman and two former Cabinet members indicted with him entered not guilty pleas to government corruption charges. No trial date has been set.
Scrushy's arraignment came four months after a federal court jury in Birmingham acquitted him of charges that he participated in a $2.7 billion fraud at the rehabilitation and medical-service company he founded.