Montoya Tells Jury He Didn’t Sell Vote to Special Interests

Sen. Joseph B. Montoya, completing four days of testimony in his own defense, repeatedly denied Monday that he sold his vote to special interest groups seeking action on legislation.

On the final day of an exhaustive cross-examination, Montoya testified that he was never influenced by thousands of dollars in campaign contributions, honorariums and gifts he received from such groups as the recording industry, foreign medical schools and the California Optometric Assn.

Questioned about more than $5,000 in payments and free travel he received from Caribbean medical universities while carrying legislation to help them, Montoya replied, “None of that money is tied to the legislation.”

The Whittier Democrat is on trial in U.S. District Court on 10 counts of extortion, racketeering and money-laundering stemming from a four-year investigation of alleged political corruption in the state Capitol.

During relentless questioning of Montoya, Assistant U.S. Atty. John Panneton charged for the first time that Montoya also evaded federal income taxes by failing to report his personal use of campaign funds as taxable income.

“The government believes money was not reported,” Panneton told the court. But the prosecutor pressed the matter no further after U.S. District Judge Milton L. Schwartz upheld a defense objection that the details of the senator’s taxes were privileged.

Montoya has not been charged with violating federal tax laws. However, he testified during the trial that he diverted more than $45,000 in political money for personal purposes.

During a break in the proceedings, Panneton would not say whether any tax charges would be filed against Montoya.

In his testimony, Montoya denied a pivotal charge that he solicited $10,000 in speaking fees from Florida insurance executive Douglas O. Ruedlinger.

Ruedlinger testified earlier in the trial that Montoya invited him to Sacramento, offered to sponsor legislation that would help his business and then asked for the payment of speaking fees.

Montoya said he met privately with Ruedlinger once, but told the jury: “There was never any mention of speaking fees anytime, anywhere.”

The senator also said he was unaware in 1985 that one of his aides, Steven English, told two lobbyists representing the foreign medical schools that it would cost them $5,000 for Montoya to carry legislation they were seeking, as has been alleged during the trial.

Earlier, the jury heard testimony from former Montoya aide Karen Frick that the senator set the price tag of $5,000 and that English then passed on the message to the lobbyists.

Montoya denied that he ever demanded such a payment and said he had not heard of the alleged solicitation until after he was indicted last year.

“My understanding was that there was some mention of money at a juncture where legislation was discussed and that would have been inappropriate,” Montoya said.