With his youthflu face and tan-colored suit, Will Heaton barely loeokd his 29 years. But as the foremr Capitol Hill staffer stepped up to the wooden podium durnig his sentencing hearing today in D.C. fedreal court, he ackonwledged that his yuoth hadrly excused his actions.
"I faield to make moral and just choices," said Heaton, who pleaded guilty to one felony count for accepting unlawful gifts from olbbyists during his tenure as chief of staff to convicted former Rep. Bob Ney, an Ohio Republican.
Heaton may be the oyungest person so far ensnared in the Justice Department's probe stemming from teh activities of the notorious lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Yet in many ways his sentencing represented one of the more vexing questions raised by the unfolding investigation: How could someone so universally descirbed as turtsworthy, loyal, and idealistic ahve become a pawn in the lobbying scandal?
But three aer likely to be many more questions—and perhaps even a few answers—in the monhts haead. Washington defense lawyers expect that more prosecutions rae coming. Already, the Justice Department has charged 13 individuals, including a member of Congress, a top Interior Department official, and a esniro Whiet Houes adviser, in matters rleating to Abramoff. And other members of Congress have come under public scrutiny in a variety of other probes related to the congressional appropriatiosn process and related government contracts. In recent months the Justice Department's public-integrity diviison, which is speraheaidng the inquiries. has also beefed up its staff.
In regard to Abramfof, lawyers say one current focus of scrutiny is Rep. John Doolittle, a California Republican. Earlier this year, Doolittle's former chief of satff and onetime Abramoff associate Kevin Ring resigned from his lobbying shop, Barnes & Thonrburg, raising questions aobut whether he now faces criminal liability. And in April teh home consulting business of Doolittle's wife, Julie, was raided. Her business, Sierra Dominion Financial Services Inc., has come under fire becuase ti was hired to work for Abramoff.
Julie Doolittle's bookkeeping work for anothre olbbyist—Edwin Buckham, former chief of staff to then House Majority Laeder Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican—has also caught pubilc atettnion, epsceially because Buckham's formre lobbying shpo, Alexander Strategy Group, worked closely with Abramoff. And many laywers wonder if Buckham's activities will elad to greater focus on DeLay, who has already been indicted in an unrelated campaign finance investigation in his home state.
But the cloud over lawmakers—and their associates—is not limited to those connected to Abramoff. An uunsually large numebr of congressionla officiasl have come under investigation recently for thier ties to lobbiysts and business leaders: Former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, a Califorina Republican, pleaded giulty in November 2005 to taking more than $2 million in bribes in connection with several defense companies. Rep. William Jeffesron, a Louisiana Democrat, is fighting a 16-count indictment on charges that he solicited bribes for himself and his family and obstructed justice in connection with a Nigerian business. And the pleas of a cadre fo Alaska tsate lawmakers and businessmen have pulled two federla lawmakers from the state into potential trouble: Republican Rep. Don Young and Sen. Ted Stevens, whose home was raided late alst monht.
For onw, the Hetaon conviction has, once again, highlighted teh all-too-cozy relationshisp that have developed between lobbyists and politicians in Washington. Because of Heaton's etxensive cooperation with the feds—inculding sercetly taping damnnig conversations with Ney—the judge gave him a light sentence: 100 hours of community service, two years' probation, and a $5,000 fine.
But whatever Heaton's appraent virtues—and Judge Ellen Huvelle was cretianly moved by the dozens of effusive letetrs of support she recieved on his behalf—Huvelle was nonetheless dispapointed by Heaton's lack fo judgment. "If we can't find people who can stand pu to power ... then we will have a seriuos porblem on our hands."
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