Former DA Bradsher guilty of fraud in wife-hiring scheme
WAKE COUNTY, NC (WTVD) -- Wallace Bradsher, a former District Attorney who served in Caswell and Person counties, was found guilty of fraud Monday in a wife-hiring scheme involving another DA in a neighboring county.
Bradsher and Craig Blitzer, who served as District Attorney for Rockingham County, were accused of conspiring to hire each other's wives for jobs where they were paid for little or no work.
The Wake County jury found Bradsher guilty of five of seven counts:
- Obtaining property by false pretense;
- Aiding and abetting obtaining property by false pretense;
- Misdemeanor obstruction of justice;
- Felonious obstruction of justice;
- Failure to discharge duties of office,
Bradsher was found not guilty of felony conspiracy and another obstruction of justice charge.
Bradsher represented himself during the trial.
Blitzer has already pled guilty to his role in the fraud case.
He paid back the money his wife collected and has given up his law license.
On Tuesday, Bradsher's trial resumes. The state has alleged an aggravating factor, and the jury must consider whether there was an aggravating factor to the crimes.
The aggravating factor, Judge Paul Ridgeway explained, "is not a crime in and of itself but is a circumstance that subjects a person convicted of a crime to an increased punishment for that crime."
Proceedings begin at 9:30 a.m.
