A former Tennessee state senator who was convicted of bribery charges many years ago reportedly wants to run for General Sessions Court Clerk in Memphis.
That man, John Ford, filed a petition to run this week, according to localmemphis.com
“Ford, 77, is a former Tennessee State Senator who was caught up in the TBI sting operation known as Tennessee Waltz. He was convicted on bribery charges and sentenced to 5 ½ years,” the station reported.
“He also was convicted in Nashville on corruption and honest-services wire fraud and received 14 years there, but that conviction was eventually thrown out.”
According to Local 24 Memphis, it’s unclear if Ford can actually run for office since he is a convicted felon who has done time in prison. The only way Ford could run now is to ask a judge to restore his citizen rights, the station went on to say.
According to The Memphis Flyer, Ford formerly served a term as General Sessions Clerk, simultaneous withholding his Senate seat.
“Having long since regained his citizenship rights, Ford aims to re-establish himself as a public official,” the website reported.
“Despite his notoriety, he was regarded as someone with an in-depth knowledge of the ins and outs of state government, and as a go-to legislator for mental health and various other public issues.”
The Memphis Commercial Appeal reported that Ford accepted bribes from a fake FBI company and then threatened to shoot potential witnesses against him.
The witnesses were undercover federal agents, the paper reported.
“The controversial Memphis Democrat was one of seven charged with accepting more than $90,000 to push legislation for E-Cycle Management Inc., a firm with an Internet Web site that claimed offices in Memphis, Atlanta and overseas but that actually was the creation of federal authorities,” according to The Commercial Appeal.
The Tennessee Waltz, “is the state’s biggest public corruption probe since the Rocky Top bingo scandal,” according to the paper.
– – –
Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “General Sessions Civil Court” by Shelby County.
He also has horrible aim while driving. Fortunately for the truck driver.