Ex-HealthSouth CEO Scrushy sentenced to prison

MONTGOMERY, Ala., June 29 (Reuters) Ousted HealthSouth Corp. Chief Executive Richard Scrushy, acquitted two years ago in a major corporate fraud case, and former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman were both sentenced to prison for bribery.

A federal judge yesterday sentenced Scrushy, 54, to six years and 10 months in prison and Siegelman, 61, to seven years and four months after they were convicted of involvement in a scheme to manipulate hospital building permissions that favored HealthSouth.

Scrushy was convicted last June on six charges of conspiracy and mail fraud, a year and a day after the flamboyant businessman turned preacher was acquitted on 89 counts of corporate accounting fraud in a separate, even more high-profile, case.

Siegelman, a Democrat who has said the case against him was political persecution by his foes, possibly masterminded by White House chief strategist Karl Rove, was convicted on seven charges of bribery, conspiracy and mail fraud. He was acquitted on 25 other counts.

The conviction hinged on Siegelman accepting a motorcycle as a gift and taking 0,000 to put Scrushy on a board that governed hospitals. The funds were used for a campaign launched by Siegelman to establish a state lottery.

Scrushy had been battling the conviction by citing a religious conversion, the founding of his church, Grace and Purpose, and the needs of his nine children. Scrushy, who also used to be a member of a country music band, hosts a daily bible show with his wife, Leslie.

''I would like to be free to continue helping people,'' he said in an appeal to the court before the sentence was passed.

He appeared visibly shaken when he was led away by marshals and mouthed ''I love you'' to his wife.

Scrushy founded HealthSouth in 1984 and built it into what at one time was the largest US health-care provider.

Over the past couple of years, Scrushy has paid million to settle US Securities and Exchange Commission charges he directed HealthSouth to overstate revenues by at least MONTGOMERY, Ala., June 29 (Reuters) Ousted HealthSouth Corp. Chief Executive Richard Scrushy, acquitted two years ago in a major corporate fraud case, and former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman were both sentenced to prison for bribery.

A federal judge yesterday sentenced Scrushy, 54, to six years and 10 months in prison and Siegelman, 61, to seven years and four months after they were convicted of involvement in a scheme to manipulate hospital building permissions that favored HealthSouth.

Scrushy was convicted last June on six charges of conspiracy and mail fraud, a year and a day after the flamboyant businessman turned preacher was acquitted on 89 counts of corporate accounting fraud in a separate, even more high-profile, case.

Siegelman, a Democrat who has said the case against him was political persecution by his foes, possibly masterminded by White House chief strategist Karl Rove, was convicted on seven charges of bribery, conspiracy and mail fraud. He was acquitted on 25 other counts.

The conviction hinged on Siegelman accepting a motorcycle as a gift and taking $500,000 to put Scrushy on a board that governed hospitals. The funds were used for a campaign launched by Siegelman to establish a state lottery.

Scrushy had been battling the conviction by citing a religious conversion, the founding of his church, Grace and Purpose, and the needs of his nine children. Scrushy, who also used to be a member of a country music band, hosts a daily bible show with his wife, Leslie.

''I would like to be free to continue helping people,'' he said in an appeal to the court before the sentence was passed.

He appeared visibly shaken when he was led away by marshals and mouthed ''I love you'' to his wife.

Scrushy founded HealthSouth in 1984 and built it into what at one time was the largest US health-care provider.

Over the past couple of years, Scrushy has paid $81 million to settle US Securities and Exchange Commission charges he directed HealthSouth to overstate revenues by at least $2.6 billion between 1996 and 2002.

The HealthSouth case was one of a number of high-profile fraud scandals, including Enron and WorldCom, that rocked the US corporate world earlier this decade.

Reuters KK VP0658 .6 billion between 1996 and 2002.

The HealthSouth case was one of a number of high-profile fraud scandals, including Enron and WorldCom, that rocked the US corporate world earlier this decade.

Reuters KK VP0658