Dana Jill Simpson Stands By Affidavit

The Republican lawyer who gave traction to former Gov. Don Siegelman’s (D-AL) claims that his prosecution was politically motivated is standing by the affidavit she signed in May. She also raises new allegations of questionable — and possibly illegal — political machinations in Alabama.

The key points in Dana Jill Simpson’s sworn statement have not been explicitly disproven, though they’ve been artfully denied by some. Not only has Simpson faced criticism in the Alabama press, but she’s been attacked by some of the GOP operatives whom she accused of discussing ginning up a criminal investigation of Siegelman to get him to concede the 2002 election. Simpson hit back today at her detractors in a public statement available here. Siegelman was convicted of bribery in June 2006 and sentenced to seven years in prison.

In addition to standing her ground on her sworn statement, Simpson outlines an experience — entirely separate from the 2002 talks about investigating Siegelman — that prompted her to go to the Alabama bar to discuss ethical implications of what she knew about Republican tactics in the state:

A former lawyer came to see me and said he was sent by Governor Bob Riley and Gerald Dial. This man asked me to do things that I worried were illegal and certainly unethical in the Senate election contest against Democratic Senator Lowell Barron, Senator Zeb Little, Senator Roger Bedford and Senator Hank Sanders. I did not want to get mixed up in these things and told him I was not interested in any involvement.

Simpson has conducted opposition research for Republicans in several Alabama races, including for Riley, the current governor. The candidate names she lists are all state Senate Democrats.

Simpson also appears prepared to speak in public about what she knows, saying she will testify if called by any investigative agency or court. She just might get the chance, now that Rep. Artur Davis (D-AL) has called on the House Judiciary Committee to look into the matter. Siegelman’s lawyers have also said they may incorporate her affidavit into a motion for a retrial.