Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
A former state senator pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of influence peddling and taking about $400,000 in kickbacks.
Gary George, who was voted out of office in October, was released on bond, and his trial was scheduled for March 1.
Once a rising star in the Democratic Party and co-chairman of the Legislature’s powerful Joint Finance Committee, George could get up to 5 years in prison and $250,000 in fines if convicted on each of two counts.
Prosecutors allege George used his position to defraud the state and steer business to a man who gave him money. He also is accused of obtaining kickbacks from his former attorney, whom he helped get legal work from two organizations that received federal money.
