Sounds like the gentleman from Memphis has spent a little too much time smoking crack with former DC mayor Marion Barry.....

MEMPHIS — Former state Sen. John Ford entered a not guilty plea in federal court on corruption charges today, saying it is the government that is corrupt.

“The government has tried to show me and others as being corrupt and villains when in essence they’re the ones that are corrupt. They’re the villains,” Ford said.

“They’re the ones who have been disingenuous all along. They’re the ones who set up a fictitious, illegal, phony apparatus,” Ford said.

The Memphis Democrat is among the lawmakers charged with taking bribes from that “phony apparatus,” a fake company set up by the FBI called E-Cycle. Representatives of the company, who were really undercover federal agents, paid him to promote legislation that would have benefited its “business” of recycling computer equipment, according to federal court papers.

The former senator, who resigned his seat after being charged in late May, also questioned the timing of his arrest two weeks ago, saying it came just one day after his nephew U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Jr. filed papers to run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Bill Frist.

He was also suspicious because he and co-defendants Sen. Ward Crutchfield and Sen. Kathryn Bowers had been working during the legislative session to try to prevent Tennesseans from being kicked off TennCare, the state’s troubled health insurance program for the poor and uninsured.

Ford says government, not he, is corrupt

There's that old saying.. How can you tell if a Lawyer/Salesman/Politician is lying? If their lips are moving, they probably are.

MEMPHIS — Former state Sen. John Ford said his resignation from his Senate seat Saturday was not connected to his arrest on bribery charges two days before.

Ford, who entered the Memphis federal courthouse today for a hearing, said his Senate resignation on the last day of the session had nothing to do with the corruption charges. He said he began planning his resignation after the legislature passed measures making it illegal for lawmakers to work as paid consultants.

"I made up my mind then it was time to go," Ford said. "I didn't need to resign from the Senate because of these charges."
...
Ford, a 31-year veteran of the state Senate, is charged with taking $55,000 in payoffs from undercover agents during a government sting called "Tennessee Waltz."

The Background Story

Ford says resignation not connected to bribery charges

I see a federal pound-me-in-the-ass prison in Sen. Ford's future..

Since state Sen. John Ford was first elected 31 years ago, the Memphis Democrat's name has been at the center of numerous controversies. Below is a recap of some of the most notorious episodes in his legislative career.

Controversy: In October 1990, Ford was charged with shooting at a trucker on Interstate 40 near Lexington. He was indicted and pleaded not guilty.
Controversy: In 2003, a survey of Ford's Federal Express charges on his state account revealed that he had used the account to send numerous personal packages.
Controversy: Ford was ac-cused earlier this year of receiving a $15,000 contract from Johnson Controls, a major electronics manufacturer. Johnson Controls, based in Wisconsin, paid Ford a one-time consulting fee in September 2001 to help the company obtain energy-efficiency contracts for state buildings in 2003.
Controversy: Ford was ac-cused earlier this year of using campaign funds to pay for his daughter's wedding reception in 2003. Ford spent $15,320, claiming it was a legitimate election expense because 100 of his constituents were invited to the reception. The state Registry of Election Finance ruled the expenditure improper and fined him $10,000 this month.
Controversy: Information emerged earlier this year that Doral Dental, which holds a TennCare dental benefits management contract, paid Pennsylvania-based Managed Care Services Group Inc. $40,000 a month for about two years. Ford is a partner in a similarly named company with the same address. On his tax returns, Ford reported that a company called "Managed Care Services Group 1" paid him more than $237,000 in 2002 and 2003.
Controversy: During a January 2005 hearing in a child-support lawsuit brought by a North Carolina woman with whom Ford fathered a daughter, the senator claimed he should not have to pay more than $500 per month in support for the 10-year-old girl. It was at this hearing that Ford said he lived in two separate homes with two women whose children he fathered. Neither of the homes is in his Senate district.

Latest indictment adds to Sen. Ford's checkered public record

Right in keepping with his character... Ultimate scum bag public servant.

The Memphis Democrat and six others have been indicted in ''Operation Tennessee Waltz,'' which is rocking the Capitol.

The Tennessean

MEMPHIS — State Sen. John Ford may ask for a public defender to represent him, so the taxpayers can pay for his defense against charges of bribery, conspiracy and witness intimidation.

The colorful Memphis Democrat, who appeared in federal court today handcuffed and shackled at the ankles, had interviewed three lawyers earlier today and had interviews with two others scheduled for later in the day, his lawyer Martin Grusin said in court today.

Sen. Ford may seek public defender

Isn't the road to hell paved with good intentions?

Parents may have to get involved in their children's schools — or else.

A proposal making its way through the General Assembly would require parents with children in kindergarten through grade 4 to ''volunteer'' at least 12 hours a year. And they couldn't just show up — they'd be expected to get involved in the teaching process by tutoring, chaperoning lesson-related field trips or helping students play educational games.

If the bill proposed by Sen. John Ford, D-Memphis, and Rep. Lois DeBerry, D-Memphis, is approved, though, it could become a rule without teeth. It's unclear what, if anything, would happen to parents or schools who fail to comply.
...
It's also unclear if parents who work long hours or have violent or criminal backgrounds would be expected to participate.

''I don't know that I'd want everybody up here working with my child,'' Lewis said.

Bill would make parents 'volunteer' in schools (Tenn)

Well, it looked good until they used the word Washington. $%(*(]#@!

State Sen. John Ford, whose ethics problems continue to dominate Capitol Hill, has told a Memphis publication that he does not plan to seek re-election next year.

If that's the case, it does not surprise one of the Memphis Democrat's closest friends in the General Assembly.
...
As for his future plans: ''You never can tell. I might run for mayor. I might run for county commissioner. I don't know. I might even try to go to Washington.''

Ford won't seek re-election, says Memphis weekly

On Friday, Davenport said the judge had already paid the $10 fine. The offense wasn't serious enough to impact Coats' judgeship beyond the fine, Davenport said.

Judge fines himself for letting cell phone ring

I wonder if it was set on vibrate...

Romanian police searching a woman suspected of theft found her hiding a mobile phone in her vagina.

They made the astonishing discovery after dialling the number and hearing a muffled ringing coming from somewhere under the woman's skirt.

A witness said he had alerted police when he saw Ruxandra Gardian steal the phone from a customer in a restaurant.
Police questioned the 34-year-old and were about to let her go when the witness suggested they ring the phone to determine whether she was hiding it.
On dialling the number they heard a sound coming from under Gardian's clothes and took her to police headquarters to be strip-searched.

Police officers conducting the search were shocked to find the phone stashed in the woman's vagina.

However, the owner of the phone has since refused to have it returned to him saying it was damaged beyond repair and he would be filing an insurance claim.

Officer Aurel Popescu commented: "I've seen a lot in my time as a policeman but never anything like this."

Romanian Woman Thief Hid Mobile Phones In Her Vagina

flynn23 wrote:
] ] The film starred adult actress Summer Nyte, 31, of
] ] Sevierville, Tenn. Her husband, truck driver David Moore,
] ] 42, helped produce the project and said they chose to
] ] shoot the film locally because ''Nashville is a nice
] ] city.''
]
] ] The movie, which also featured adult-film actor Ron
] ] Jeremy, involved men ages 21-62 engaging in sex with
] ] Nyte. Nyte was the only person paid for taking part,
] ] Moore said.
]
] One look at Summer and it's unclear why she was the only one
] that got paid.

W00t W00t. The Hedgehog Roxx! Apparently, State Sen. John Ford must not have gottent he casting call... :p

RE: Metro says it can't prosecute creators of pornographic movie

Apparently a whole lot of rules changed after 9/11/2001... Sheesh! Can you imagine how pissed you would be if this had been you?

The fear of terrorism has reached the English city of Ipswich.

Heidi Brown says she was told she could park her new motor scooter outside the vehicle registration office in Ipswich, while she waited to get number plates.

However, it was blown up by the army in a controlled explosion after someone reported it might have been a bomb.

Police say the moped was chained to a fence outside the building, but officers were not able to identify whose it was because there were no number plates on it.

The 22-year-old care worker appeared soon after the blast with her new plates but too late to identify her vehicle.

English police blow up parked scooter