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The prosecution asked Balducci if Judge Lackey pursued him through the summer of 2007 about the Jones case. Balducci says no. Judge Lackey did not initiate all of the conversations. Balducci did call him. Balducci took his sons to see Lackey twice when Lackey was in New Albany in court.

Balducci willingly committed the crime.

Keker asks for Jenks material (this is grand jury testimony, which the defense gets at least at the end of a witness’s testimony). Judge Biggers says you only get the material relating to the direct examination. Rather than pick through, prosecution gave him all.

On cross examination, Balducci testified:

Date of the Scruggs firm visit: Between 3/15 and 3/28. Not sure of it. Knew generally about the case. We were having a meeting about other business matters. There was a project in Kentucky and other matters. Buse was not there. The meeting was an hour. The part about Jones lasted 20 minutes. He recalls Dick Scruggs brought the Jones case up. Zach, not Patterson, raised going to see the judge.

Keker asks if Balducci knew of any ex parte contact in Jones before the meeting or learned of any ex parte contact by Tollison in the Jones case. Balducci knew that the case was put under seal. He learned that Lackey had signed the order sealing the case.

There was a discussion of fear among the members of the Scruggs firm that Tollison was going to use the case to draw media attention to the dispute. There was concern that the suit was an effort by Tollison to embarrass Scruggs locally. Zach was the first to mention the Lackey relationship. Patterson verified the longstanding relationship. Balducci was asked to go see Lackey and he agreed to do it.

Does not recall who said Lackey had the case. Dickie said: can this case be sent to arbitration. Balducci said: I don’t know. We didn’t discuss paying any money to the judge. We did discuss corruptly influencing the judge.

Dick Scruggs said Judge Lackey ought to move the case to arbitration because that is the correct thing to do. Did not think he was talking about a bribe. Did not think that Lackey was the kind of judge who would take a bribe.

Balducci went to Lackey’s office and met for 30-45 minutes. Was there to ask a personal favor. Was not there to bribe him or offer quid pro quo. Balducci told him that there were allegations in the complaint that were vicious and slanderous. Balducci did not know what Scruggs’s agreement was, just knew what they told him.

Nothing Balducci perceived suggested Lackey had a problem with this meeting.

Patterson Balducci had two offices in Mississippi and a Washington office.