Judge drops one Chvala charge
10:56 AM 2/04/03
Phil Brinkman State government reporter

A Dane County judge on Tuesday threw out one felony count against state Sen. Chuck Chvala but rejected defense motions to dismiss the remaining 19 charges.

Chvala, D-Madison, the former Senate majority leader, was charged in October with 20 counts including extortion, misconduct in office and filing false campaign finance statements.

Among other things, prosecutors allege Chvala demanded campaign contributions from lobbyists in exchange for favorable treatment on legislation, used state staff and resources to run campaigns and hid from state election authorities his control of an ostensibly "independent" political group.

Circuit Judge Daniel Moeser found plausible grounds for allowing all of the charges to proceed except one: that Chvala participated in a scheme to secretly contribute money to a fellow senator's campaign under someone else's name.

Chvala's attorney, James A. Olson, argued in papers filed in December that the case against his client should be dismissed in part because the alleged demands were a protected form of speech under a provision of the state constitution.

That provision gives immunity to legislators from civil suits or criminal prosecution for "words spoken in debate." Subsequent court cases have determined the phrase extends beyond words said on the floor of the Assembly or Senate to include matters integral to the legislative process, such as discussions with lobbyists about the pros and cons of proposed legislation.

But "'shaking down' parties for campaign contributions is not, by any stretch of the imagination, a material and integral part of the legislative process," Moeser wrote in a seven-page opinion released Tuesday.

Moeser also dismissed Olson's complaint that the rules regarding whether state employees can engage in campaign activity with state resources is ambiguous and thus Chvala can't be held responsible for violating them.

Moeser conceded much of what legislators and their staff do falls into a "gray area" between legislating and campaigning. But conducting full-fledged campaigns out of the Capitol is clearly not part of Chvala's legislative duties, Moeser said.

"The allegations, if proven, constitute a version of public financing of campaigns with one problem - the public did not know about it, did not approve of it and did not consent to their tax dollars being used to promote political candidates," Moeser wrote.

The judge upheld Olson's objection to one charge: that Chvala evaded campaign finance reporting rules when he gave an envelope containing $1,630 collected at a labor rally to an aide, Lance Walter, to deposit into a fellow senator's campaign account.

Walter subsequently deposited some of the money in a joint checking account with his wife, who wrote a check to the senator's campaign, and gave the rest to aide Wendy Kloiber, who also wrote a check. State law prohibits a person from giving money to a candidate under someone else's name.

Moeser said there is no indication Chvala knew how much money was in the envelope or that he participated in the scheme to hide the source of the money.

Olson could appeal all or parts of Moeser's ruling. He did not return a message seeking comment Tuesday.

Chvala's preliminary hearing is scheduled to begin Monday. Authorities have set aside three days for the proceeding.