Figure in Hastings Case Ordered Jailed
A federal judge on Tuesday found disbarred attorney William Borders in contempt of court and ordered him to jail for refusing to answer questions from a Senate panel gathering evidence in the Alcee L. Hastings impeachment trial. U.S. District Judge Thomas Pennfield Jackson gave Borders until 10 a.m. Friday to surrender to federal marshals.
The committee is collecting evidence concerning charges that Hastings conspired with Borders to obtain a $150,000 payoff and lied about it before a jury that acquitted him in 1983. Borders was convicted in 1982, disbarred and sent to prison for 33 months.
Hastings, who was impeached by the House in August, 1988, is also accused of improperly disclosing information that government investigators obtained through a court-approved wiretap.
Once the committee finishes its report, the full Senate will vote on whether to remove Hastings from the federal bench and thus take away the $89,500 annual salary he continues to receive.
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