Craig hearing wraps up with no decision
Idaho Sen. Larry Craig’s hearing in a Minnesota courtroom has wrapped up after about 45 minutes of arguments from attorneys on both sides. At the close of the hearing, Judge Charles Porter indicated that he won’t have a decision until the end of next week at the earliest – which would be well after Craig’s self-imposed deadline of Sept. 30th, when Craig has said he’d resign from the Senate if he hadn’t been able to clear his name.
Patrick Hogan, spokesman for the Metropolitan Airports Commission, joined the prosecutors to give a brief statement to reporters after the hearing. Hogan said Craig knowingly pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct, and that prosecutors’ arguments showed there’s no legal basis for reversing the plea. “The defendant received due process under the law and had more than eight weeks … in which to consider his legal options,” Hogan said. “After careful consideration, the defendant calculatingly entered a plea of guilty.”
He added “We anticipate a positive ruling.”
Craig, who attended several Senate proceedings in Washington, D.C. while his attorneys were representing him in Minneapolis, is expected to have a statement later today.