Nov 7, 2007 9:28 pm US/Pacific
SF Supervisor Jew Pleads Not Guilty To Bribery
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5 / AP / BCN) ―
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San Francisco Supervisor Ed Jew
AP
A suspended San Francisco city supervisor pleaded not guilty in federal court Wednesday to bribery charges, denying he shook down local businesses facing licensing problems.
Ed Jew, who Mayor Gavin Newsom has temporarily kicked off the board of supervisors, is charged with bribery, extortion and fraud for allegedly demanding over $80,000 from fast food restaurant owners to make their planning department woes disappear.
U.S. Magistrate Bernard Zimmerman allowed Jew, 47, to remain free on a previously set $1 million bond.
Jew's attorney, Steven Gruel, said outside the Federal Building courthouse that Jew maintains his innocence and will fight the charges.
"He didn't do it," Gruel said, who noted that the indictment of his client "is nothing more than one side of the story."
Gruel said he is collecting evidence to rebut the federal charges and the truth will evcentually come to light.
"I'm going to take the Titanic and turn it slowly around. It's not going to happen in a day," the defense attorney explained.
The federal charges each carry theoretical maximum sentences of 10 or 20 years in prison upon conviction. But Gruel said that if Jew were to be convicted, the actual penalty under federal sentencing guidelines would be two to three years in prison.
Jew himself declined to comment on the specifics of his case and said he was "beginning to spend a lot of time with my family."
Jew said he gets his resilience in adversity from his grandfather, who founded the Chinatown flower shop now managed by Jew and his wife.
Jew also faces separate state charges of election fraud and perjury for allegedly lying about living in San Francisco to qualify to represent the city's Sunset District neighborhoods. He earlier pleaded not guilty in that case.
Prosecutors contend he lived in Burlingame rather than a Sunset District house.
Newsom suspended Jew from office in September when he filed charges with the city's Ethics Commission seeking Jew's permanent removal for residency violations.
The San Francisco city attorney has also filed a civil lawsuit in Superior Court to permanently remove Jew from the 11-member board of supervisors. Jew was served with a copy of that suit just before Wednesday's federal court hearing.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.)
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