RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - The state Court of Appeals on Tuesday threw out the conviction of a former North Carolina prosecutor for hiring a colleague’s wife for a no-show job.
Person County District Attorney Wallace Bradsher was disbarred and served five months behind bars in 2018 after being found guilty of obtaining property by false pretense, obstruction of justice and failure to discharge the duties of his office, news sources reported at the time.
A three-judge panel of the appeals court agreed unanimously that Bradsher didn’t “work in concert” with Cindy Blitzer to enter falsified hours in the state payroll system, so he wasn’t guilty of fraud, WRAL reported Tuesday. Also, his statements to a N.C. State Bureau of Investigation agent reviewing her timesheets didn’t impede the investigation, the court ruled, so Bradsher wasn’t guilty of obstruction.
Bradsher’s convictions on the other charges still stand. The appeals court sent the case back to the trial court for any necessary proceedings.
Craig Blitzer, former Rockingham County district attorney, testified during the trial that he and Bradsher agreed in 2015 to hire each other’s wives to get around state ethics rules. Cindy Blitzer said Bradsher knew that she wasn’t doing any work for months but was still getting paid.
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