Jurors in Kenyatta Johnson bribery trial deliberate a second day without reaching a verdict

The federal jury deliberating the fates of Philadelphia City Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson and his wife, Dawn Chavous, ended their second day of discussions Thursday without reaching a verdict.

“We know how hard you are working,” U.S. District Judge Gerald A. McHugh told the panel of eight men and four women, who have been deliberating the case for roughly 11 hours over two days so far. “It’s a challenge deliberating in complex cases. All that we ask is that you continue.”

Their discussions will resume Monday, as the judge had previously said he would not hold court Friday in observance of the Good Friday and Passover holidays.

McHugh said he would start next week with an answer to a question the jurors sent just before their dismissal: “Does failing to disclose a fact — such as a marriage —” constitute a knowing intent to defraud under the statute defining honest services fraud, the crime with which Johnson and his wife are charged?

Many of the witnesses who testified at trial — including members of Johnson’s Council staff — said they were unaware that Chavous held a consulting contract with Universal Companies, a South Philadelphia nonprofit, even as Johnson tasked them to work on items related to the nonprofit’s real estate holdings.

Prosecutors have alleged that Chavous’ nearly $67,000 contract was a sham meant to funnel bribe money to the councilmember in order to persuade him to back Universal in various issues involving its real estate holdings that had come before the city’s government.

» READ MORE: No verdict in Kenyatta Johnson trial after second day of jury deliberations

— Jeremy Roebuck and Oona Goodin-Smith

The federal jury deliberating the fates of Philadelphia City Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson and his wife, Dawn Chavous, ended their second day of discussions Thursday without reaching a verdict.

“We know how hard you are working,” U.S. District Judge Gerald A. McHugh told the panel of eight men and four women, who have been deliberating the case for roughly 11 hours so far. “It’s a challenge deliberating in complex cases. All that we ask is that you continue.”

Their discussions will resume Monday, as the judge had previously said he would not hold court Friday in observance of the Good Friday and Passover holidays.

McHugh said he would start next week with an answer to a question the jurors sent just before their dismissal: “Does failing to disclose a fact – such as a marriage” constitute a knowing intent to defraud under the statute defining honest services fraud?

Many of the witnesses who testified at trial — including members of Johnson’s own Council staff — said they were unaware that Chavous held a consulting contract with Universal Companies, a South Philadelphia nonprofit, even as Johnson tasked them to work on items related to the nonprofit’s real estate holdings.

Prosecutors have alleged that that Chavous’ nearly $67,000 contract was a sham meant to funnel bribe money to the council member in order persuade him to back Universal in various issues involving its real estate holdings that had come before the city’s government.

They contend that Johnson’s failure to disclose his wife’s business relationship with Universal while he was working on issues that benefitted the nonprofit is evidence of his guilt.

But both Johnson and Chavous have denied the allegations and insist that they never brought it up because her consulting work had nothing to do with his decision-making.

— Jeremy Roebuck

The jury has asked a question on the charges against Philadelphia Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson and Dawn Chavous, inquiring whether the first count of honest services wire fraud pertains only to the alleged scheme around the Royal Theater zoning ordinance, or if it also includes accusations surrounding Universal’s properties at 13th and Bainbridge.

(It applies to both, attorneys said.)

The government has alleged Universal kept Johnson “on retainer” in 2013 and 2014 via surreptitious payments to his wife under a sham consulting contract totaling $67,000, and that in return, Johnson twice used his Council office in Universal’s favor.

Prosecutors say he pushed zoning legislation through Council — using councilmanic prerogative — to clear the way for Universal to redevelop the dilapidated Royal Theater at a profit.

And in 2014, when the city sought to reclaim Universal’s blighted parcel of properties at 13th and Bainbridge Streets — which its executives then represented to banks as an asset worth millions — prosecutors allege Johnson refused to back the initiative in order to keep the land in Universal’s hands.

Defense attorneys have balked at the government’s assertions, saying Johnson did not need under-the-table influence to support Universal and its developments, and that Chavous — a politically-connected charter schools advocate — did legitimate work for Universal under her contract.

Johnson and Chavous each face two counts of honest services wire fraud, punishable by up to 20 years in prison. They’ve both pleaded not guilty.

Since they began deliberations Wednesday, jurors have asked around 10 questions to the court so far — most for evidence and trial exhibits, and one for paper clips and office supplies.

— Oona Goodin-Smith

Good morning from the second day of jury deliberations in Kenyatta Johnson’s bribery trial.

The panel of eight men and four women are already back to their discussions, after deliberating for roughly five hours Wednesday without reaching a verdict.

U.S. District Judge Gerald A. McHugh did not bring them out into the courtroom this morning, allowing them to get back to work immediately.

Meanwhile, Johnson and his wife and codefendant, Dawn Chavous, have been sitting patiently — and in relative silence — at the defense table next to their attorneys waiting for any news.

We’ll be here to update you, when there is.

— Jeremy Roebuck

Jurors began their deliberations Wednesday in the federal bribery trial of Philadelphia City Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson and his wife, Dawn Chavous, but broke for the day after roughly five hours of discussion without reaching a verdict.

The panel spent most of the afternoon cloistered, occasionally sending requests to the judge to see certain pieces of evidence including emails, invoices, and other exhibits presented by both sides during the trial.

Johnson and Chavous passed the time milling around the courtroom in relative silence, pausing occasionally to chat with a sizable crowd of supporters who have shown up throughout the trial.

They avoided questions from reporters, as they have done throughout the proceedings, as they left the courthouse at the end of the day.

» READ MORE: Jurors in Kenyatta Johnson’s bribery trial end first day of deliberations without a verdict

— Jeremy Roebuck and Oona Goodin-Smith

Kenyatta Johnson, 48, a three-term incumbent on Philadelphia City Council, represents parts of Center City, Southwest, and his native South Philadelphia. Before he was elected to Council in 2012, he served for three years as state representative.

Dawn Chavous, 42, is the founder and president of her own consulting firm, a charter school lobbyist, political consultant, and founder of the Sky Community Partners nonprofit, which helps to distribute state scholarships to public and private schools outside students’ home districts.

She has longstanding ties to State Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams, for whom she worked for nearly a decade, rising in his office from aide to chief of staff. Eventually, she ran his 2010 gubernatorial campaign. It was while working in Williams’ office that she met Johnson, who was serving as an aide to the senator at the time. They married in 2012.

Prosecutors say she did “little, if any, discernible work” — an estimated 30-40 hours total over a 16-month span — for the money she received consulting with Universal.

» READ MORE: Prosecutors put Kenyatta Johnson’s finances under a microscope at his federal bribery trial

— Oona Goodin-Smith and Jeremy Roebuck

Prosecutors say Kenyatta Johnson used his position in 2013 and 2014 to protect real estate holdings of Universal Companies, a South Philadelphia community development and charter schools nonprofit founded by legendary music producer Kenny Gamble. In exchange, they say, Johnson took bribes of more than $66,750 in the form of a consulting job for his wife, Dawn Chavous.

The couple each face two counts of honest services fraud, a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Abdur Rahim Islam and Shahied Dawan, two Universal Companies executives accused of bribing Johnson and Chavous, face the majority of charges, including counts of racketeering conspiracy, tax evasion, and wire fraud.

Johnson and Chavous have pleaded not guilty to the charges. Their attorneys argue that there is no evidence that Chavous’ contract with Universal had anything to do with Johnson’s votes on matters involving Universal’s landholdings.

Should he be convicted, Kenyatta Johnson, like Bobby Henon, would be forced to give up his seat on the Philadelphia City Council, making him the second member of Council to do so this year — a churn not seen since the Abscam scandal of the 1980s, which saw three Council members booted due to federal bribery convictions.

Attorneys expect the first portion of the trial involving Johnson, Chavous, Islam and Dawan to last around three weeks, and the second section — focused only on Islam and Dawan — to last a few additional days.

— Oona Goodin-Smith and Jeremy Roebuck