991143 Espy Denies Tyson's InfluenceNovember 15, 1999Washington - Former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy denied that Tyson Foods used a company party he attended to influence new safety rules but admitted the poultry industry knew at the time that the regulations “were coming and coming fast.” Espy, who was acquitted of corruption charges, testified Friday on behalf of a Tyson executive who was convicted of giving him illegal gifts - including the 1993 party - and is now seeking a new trial. U.S. District Judge James Robertson said Espy's acknowledgment that the safety rules were “a live issue before Tyson” at the time of the party undercuts a key point in the defense's case for Tyson's governmental affairs director, Archie Schaffer III. Robertson last year overturned a jury verdict against Schaffer on grounds that no one in Tyson “knew of or anticipated anything about” the rules requiring new packaging labels. An appeals court reinstated the conviction this summer and ordered that Schaffer be sentenced. Schaffer is now asking the judge for a new trial, arguing that Espy's testimony would exonerate him. Espy had refused to testify in Schaffer's original trial when his own case was pending. To get a new trial, Schaffer's lawyers had to convince the judge that Espy's testimony might get him acquitted. Whether that was the case was “problematical,” the judge said Friday after Espy's testimony. He took the case under advisement. Schaffer was convicted of violating the Meat Inspection Act by providing illegal gifts to Espy on two occasions: in January 1993, at President Clinton's inaugural dinner; and in May 1993, at the party in Russellville, Ark. In his testimony, Espy denied that he agreed to give a speech to Arkansas poultry executives as “cover” for his attendance at the Tyson party that evening. He said he went to the party, which included an appearance by musician B.B. King, as a courtesy to Tyson officials and for a “recreational opportunity.” But he had difficulty in recalling what he said and did at the party. Outside the courtroom, Espy said he hoped his testimony would help Schaffer. “This is never ending. At some time it should end for everybody,” Espy said. Espy, who didn't testify at his own trial, expressed disappointment that Independent Counsel Donald Smaltz didn't question him during Friday's hearing, leaving the job to a staff attorney. Schaffer's attorney, Bill Jeffress, told the judge Espy had offered “powerful, powerful testimony” that showed the Arkansas speech was a bona fide event not arranged by Schaffer to cover Espy's appearance at the party. Espy now practices law in Jackson, Miss. Tyson Foods, based in Springdale, Ark., is the nation's largest poultry producer. Prosecutors have said the company spent about $12,000 on Espy and his then-girlfriend, including tickets and air fare to a Dallas Cowboys football game and limousine rides.
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