Larry Langford
Encyclopedia
Larry Paul Langford is the former mayor of the city of Birmingham
, Alabama. He previously served on the Jefferson County, Alabama
, Commission, including four years as the first African American commission president. He also served as mayor of Fairfield, Alabama
, and served one term on the Birmingham City Council. Prior to entering politics, Langford was a well-known television personality, having worked for then-local ABC affiliate, WBRC TV as the community's first African American TV news reporter. In 2010, Langford began serving a 15 year federal felony
sentence, the result of a highly-publicized public corruption trial in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Langford raised money and generated public interest and support for Visionland Theme Park (now known as Alabama Adventure Theme Park
), located near Bessemer
. The park was built largely by bond
issues backed by a consortium
of municipalities in the western part of the county, as well as the city of Birmingham and the county government. The park later declared bankruptcy, and was sold to Southland Entertainment Group
for just over $5 million at auction.
In 2007, Langford was investigated by the SEC on corruption charges. In 2008, a lawsuit was filed against him for illegally accepting $156,000 in cash and benefits.
On December 1, 2008, Langford, along with investment banker William B. Blount
and former state Democratic Chairman Al LaPierre, was arrested by the FBI on a 101-count indictment alleging conspiracy
, bribery, fraud, money laundering
, and filing false tax returns in connection with a long-running bribery scheme. His public corruption trial ended on October 28, 2009 with convictions on 60 counts, and resulted in his automatic removal from office.
On March 5, 2010, Langford was sentenced to 15 years in prison by a federal judge in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
. He was also fined more than $119,000.
. He graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham
in 1972 with a bachelor of Science degree in social and behavioral sciences.
, which at the time was the ABC
affiliate in Birmingham, during the mid-1970s. He was later a public relations
director for a Birmingham Budweiser
distributor.
television reporter Shelia Smoot) on the five-member commission. Gary White, the Republican who crossed party lines and voted for Langford for president, lost his seat by a landslide in the 2006 election, as voters from his heavily-Republican district replaced him with Jim Carns. Republicans campaigned heavily on a "No Democrat, No Dome, No Debt" platform during their primary and that they would not support the election of a Democrat to the County Commission. When Carns took his seat, the three GOP members replaced Langford with Bettye Fine Collins as president. In 2010, the entire commission, including the three Republicans were either voted out of office or decided not to run for another term.
Langford has long been a proponent of a dome
d stadium for the city, intended to replace the aging Legion Field
as a venue for football
on the collegiate and professional level. He previously promoted a tax hike to pay for the dome, which was soundly rejected by voters a decade earlier under then-Mayor Richard Arrington, although later analysis of votes showed an overwhelming support for the dome inside city limits. Since taking office as Birmingham mayor, he had vowed that a domed stadium will be built in the city no matter what.
As Fairfield mayor, Langford spoke publicly many times about his plans to run for higher office, particularly Governor of Alabama. After the bankruptcy of Visionland, Langford's political fortunes seemed to wane, and his talk of higher office diminished. After losing the county commission presidency, Langford announced on June 5, 2007, that he would run for mayor of Alabama's largest city.
In what many university statisticians would later call an "improbable calculation," Langford stunned many when he emerged as a top contender in a field of 10 candidates that included incumbent mayor Bernard Kincaid
. Preliminary results credited him with 26,277 of 52,111 votes cast in the election, meaning that he avoided a runoff with challenger Patrick Cooper by 170 votes. Cooper then challenged the election in court, saying that Langford was still a resident of Fairfield and did not legally reside within Birmingham's city limits. Cooper later withdrew his case after a judge declared Langford's downtown loft a legal residence.
Langford was formerly listed as a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition
, an anti-gun group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino
and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
. After his conviction, Langford's membership status in the organization is not clear. As of September 2010, there has been no announcement of his resignation from Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
Langford has been both praised and criticized for the degree to which his Christian faith informs his political agenda. He holds Bible studies for municipal workers at City Hall each week and is a frequent speaker at public prayer services and at Church events.
On April 22, 2008, Langford issued a proclamation on city letterhead proclaiming the following Friday to be "It's Time to Pray" in the City of Birmingham. He called upon "all Bishops, Priests, Pastors, Ministers and all of our citizens of various denominations and creeds" to join him in donning burlap
sacks and having their heads smeared with ashes during a prayer rally at Boutwell Auditorium
. The display, part of his "Plan 10/30" series of anti-crime rallies, was intended to show humility and restore God's favor to a city wracked with violence. Anticipating complaints from defenders of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment
, Langford stated that "the Constitution of the United States calls for a separation of church and state – it never said anything about a separation of church from state.”
community in May 2008 when he refused to sign a proclamation for the annual Central Alabama Pride Parade
, an event that has been held on the city's south side every year since 1989. He refused to allow banners on city property for the event. Langford further stated that it was inappropriate for the government to condone a lifestyle. He was quoted in saying "My policy is don't ask because it's not my business, and don't put me in the position to make it my business."
"I thought I had stated my position very clearly. If I were to sign the permit to put up banners on city right of ways I would be condoning that which I don't condone," he said. "To give a proclamation is totally under the purview of the mayor."
Lambda Legal, an LGBTQ legal advocacy group, and Birmingham civil rights attorney David Gespass have filed suit on behalf of the Central Alabama Pride group against Larry Langford seeking an order from the courts to prohibit the mayor from discriminating against LGBTQ organizations in administering city services. The organization hopes to use a ruling in their favor to discourage further discriminatory practices in Birmingham and other cities where the legal precedent would apply. A settlement agreement was reached on September 1, 2009. The settlement, reached after a federal judge ruled against the city and mayor in their efforts to have the case dismissed, comes after Lambda Legal and local attorney David Gespass filed the lawsuit in August 2008 in the Northern District of Alabama on behalf of CAP based on Mayor Langford’s actions in refusing to allow city workers to attach Pride banners on city light posts. Members of CAP were allowed, however, to hang the banners on their own after paying the expense of bucket trucks. CAP members alleged that they had been allowed in previous years to hang Gay Pride banners displayed in accordance with the city’s practice of attaching banners for a variety of organizations that have held events in the city. However, in May 2008, the mayor announced that he would neither sign a proclamation nor allow city workers to hang the banners based on his religious beliefs that do not “condone that lifestyle choice.” This lawsuit followed initial unsuccessful efforts to negotiate the passage of an even-handed policy. Liberty Counsel
represented the city and the mayor.
In addition to advocating the construction of a domed football stadium, Langford frequently proposed unique and ambitious projects for Birmingham. To overcome the city's mass transit problems, he suggested spending millions on retro-style trolleys. Though Birmingham is more than 250 miles (402.3 km) inland from the Gulf of Mexico
, Langford proposed that a canal be constructed from the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway
so that cruise ships could dock in the city. He has also suggested building a new structure, modeled after The Pentagon
, which would house the city jail, police headquarters, fire department headquarters, a police academy, and public works offices. Langford told the Birmingham City Council that he intended to file the paperwork, along with the $500,000 fee, necessary for Birmingham to be a contender to host the 2020 Olympics.
Following the gift, Langford described how the unicorn was used as a uniter during the reign of King James'
who brought together England and Scotland. According to Langford, the gift was meant as a gesture of solidarity.
business to particular companies in exchange for bribes.
On April 30, 2008, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Langford in federal court. The lawsuit alleged Langford accepted more than $156,000 in cash and benefits from Montgomery banker Bill Blount in exchange for county bond business.
of Parrish & Co.
While Langford was head of the Jefferson County commission, he engaged in a variable rate auction and bond swaps to raise money to help improve the county's sewer system. Langford was convicted of receiving $235,000 in bribes from Blount, some routed through Al LaPierre, to help influence the bond deals. According to the indictment, William Blount helped Langford receive a $50,000 loan, which was used to purchase jewelry, including a Rolex watch, and designer clothes. Blount's firm earned $7.1 million in fees from the bond deals while LaPierre was paid $219,500 by Blount for his help the scheme. Jefferson County banks made approximately $120 million by encouraging the county to refinance nearly all of its bonds using swaps. The bonds resulted in a $3.2 billion sewer debt, contributing to the Jefferson County commissioners voting to declare bankruptcy on November 10, 2011 in what will be the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history. The government is currently seeking $7.6 million in forfeiture from the three men.
After being convicted in a trial in federal court in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Langford is now serving a 15 year federal felony sentence. He is an inmate #27349-001 at FCI Ashland, a Federal prison in Ashland, Kentucky. His projected release date is listed as May 1, 2023.
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, Alabama. He previously served on the Jefferson County, Alabama
Jefferson County, Alabama
Jefferson County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Alabama, with its county seat being located in Birmingham.As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Jefferson County was 658,466...
, Commission, including four years as the first African American commission president. He also served as mayor of Fairfield, Alabama
Fairfield, Alabama
Fairfield is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Birmingham–Hoover Metropolitan Area. The population was 12,381 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the Census estimates the population to be 11,547.-History:...
, and served one term on the Birmingham City Council. Prior to entering politics, Langford was a well-known television personality, having worked for then-local ABC affiliate, WBRC TV as the community's first African American TV news reporter. In 2010, Langford began serving a 15 year federal felony
sentence, the result of a highly-publicized public corruption trial in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Langford raised money and generated public interest and support for Visionland Theme Park (now known as Alabama Adventure Theme Park
Alabama Adventure Theme Park
Alabama Adventure is an Alabama amusement park, located off Interstate 20/59 in Bessemer, just west of Birmingham and east of Tuscaloosa. It is owned by Adrenaline Family Entertainment which also operates the Clementon Amusement Park in New Jersey....
), located near Bessemer
Bessemer, Alabama
Bessemer is a city outside of Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States eight miles west of Hoover. The population was 29,672 at the 2000 Census, but by the 2009 U.S...
. The park was built largely by bond
Bond (finance)
In finance, a bond is a debt security, in which the authorized issuer owes the holders a debt and, depending on the terms of the bond, is obliged to pay interest to use and/or to repay the principal at a later date, termed maturity...
issues backed by a consortium
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
of municipalities in the western part of the county, as well as the city of Birmingham and the county government. The park later declared bankruptcy, and was sold to Southland Entertainment Group
Southland Entertainment Group
Southland Entertainment Group is an Alabama based company that owned Alabama Adventure Theme Park near Birmingham, Alabama from 2003 until May 15, 2008. It is owned by Team Pro Parks and South Brook Entertainment....
for just over $5 million at auction.
In 2007, Langford was investigated by the SEC on corruption charges. In 2008, a lawsuit was filed against him for illegally accepting $156,000 in cash and benefits.
On December 1, 2008, Langford, along with investment banker William B. Blount
William B. Blount
William B. "Bill" Blount is an investment banker, bond underwriter, and former Alabama Democratic Party chairman. In 2009, he pleaded guilty to federal bribery and conspiracy charges in exchange for testimony against former Birmingham, Alabama, mayor Larry Langford.- Education :Bill Blount is a...
and former state Democratic Chairman Al LaPierre, was arrested by the FBI on a 101-count indictment alleging conspiracy
Conspiracy (crime)
In the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...
, bribery, fraud, money laundering
Money laundering
Money laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
, and filing false tax returns in connection with a long-running bribery scheme. His public corruption trial ended on October 28, 2009 with convictions on 60 counts, and resulted in his automatic removal from office.
On March 5, 2010, Langford was sentenced to 15 years in prison by a federal judge in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
. He was also fined more than $119,000.
Education
Langford graduated from A. H. Parker High School before entering the United States Air ForceUnited States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
. He graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham
University of Alabama at Birmingham
The University of Alabama at Birmingham is a public university in Birmingham in the U.S. state of Alabama. Developing from an extension center established in 1936, the institution became an autonomous institution in 1969 and is today one of three institutions in the University of Alabama System...
in 1972 with a bachelor of Science degree in social and behavioral sciences.
Early career
Langford was a reporter for WBRC-6WBRC
WBRC, virtual channel 6, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the Birmingham, Alabama designated market area. The station is owned by Raycom Media, and its transmitter is located atop Red Mountain in Birmingham...
, which at the time was the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
affiliate in Birmingham, during the mid-1970s. He was later a public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
director for a Birmingham Budweiser
Anheuser-Busch
Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. , is an American brewing company. The company operates 12 breweries in the United States and 18 in other countries. It was, until December 2009, also one of America's largest theme park operators; operating ten theme parks across the United States through the...
distributor.
Political career
Langford, a Democrat, was elected to the county commission in 2002, and elected president despite the fact that he was one of only two Democrats (along with former WBRCWBRC
WBRC, virtual channel 6, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the Birmingham, Alabama designated market area. The station is owned by Raycom Media, and its transmitter is located atop Red Mountain in Birmingham...
television reporter Shelia Smoot) on the five-member commission. Gary White, the Republican who crossed party lines and voted for Langford for president, lost his seat by a landslide in the 2006 election, as voters from his heavily-Republican district replaced him with Jim Carns. Republicans campaigned heavily on a "No Democrat, No Dome, No Debt" platform during their primary and that they would not support the election of a Democrat to the County Commission. When Carns took his seat, the three GOP members replaced Langford with Bettye Fine Collins as president. In 2010, the entire commission, including the three Republicans were either voted out of office or decided not to run for another term.
Langford has long been a proponent of a dome
Dome
A dome is a structural element of architecture that resembles the hollow upper half of a sphere. Dome structures made of various materials have a long architectural lineage extending into prehistory....
d stadium for the city, intended to replace the aging Legion Field
Legion Field
Legion Field is a large stadium in Birmingham, Alabama, United States, primarily designed to be used as a venue for American football, but is occasionally used for other large outdoor events. The stadium is named in honor of the American Legion, a U.S. organization of military veterans. At its peak...
as a venue for football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
on the collegiate and professional level. He previously promoted a tax hike to pay for the dome, which was soundly rejected by voters a decade earlier under then-Mayor Richard Arrington, although later analysis of votes showed an overwhelming support for the dome inside city limits. Since taking office as Birmingham mayor, he had vowed that a domed stadium will be built in the city no matter what.
As Fairfield mayor, Langford spoke publicly many times about his plans to run for higher office, particularly Governor of Alabama. After the bankruptcy of Visionland, Langford's political fortunes seemed to wane, and his talk of higher office diminished. After losing the county commission presidency, Langford announced on June 5, 2007, that he would run for mayor of Alabama's largest city.
In what many university statisticians would later call an "improbable calculation," Langford stunned many when he emerged as a top contender in a field of 10 candidates that included incumbent mayor Bernard Kincaid
Bernard Kincaid
Bernard Kincaid is the former Mayor of Birmingham, Alabama USA, elected in 1999. In 2007 he was defeated in a bid for re-election, pulling only 8% of votes in a race won by Jefferson County Commission President Larry Langford....
. Preliminary results credited him with 26,277 of 52,111 votes cast in the election, meaning that he avoided a runoff with challenger Patrick Cooper by 170 votes. Cooper then challenged the election in court, saying that Langford was still a resident of Fairfield and did not legally reside within Birmingham's city limits. Cooper later withdrew his case after a judge declared Langford's downtown loft a legal residence.
Langford was formerly listed as a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition
Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition
Mayors Against Illegal Guns is a coalition of over 600 mayors who support a number of gun control initiatives that the group calls "commonsense reforms" to fight illegal gun trafficking and gun violence in the United States...
, an anti-gun group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino
Thomas Menino
Thomas Michael "Tom" Menino is the mayor of Boston, Massachusetts, United States and the city's first Italian-American mayor...
and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg is the current Mayor of New York City. With a net worth of $19.5 billion in 2011, he is also the 12th-richest person in the United States...
. After his conviction, Langford's membership status in the organization is not clear. As of September 2010, there has been no announcement of his resignation from Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
Church and state
On April 22, 2008, Langford issued a proclamation on city letterhead proclaiming the following Friday to be "It's Time to Pray" in the City of Birmingham. He called upon "all Bishops, Priests, Pastors, Ministers and all of our citizens of various denominations and creeds" to join him in donning burlap
Burlap
Hessian , or burlap in the US, is a woven fabric usually made from skin of the jute plant or sisal fibres, or may be combined with other vegetable fibres to make rope, nets, and similar products...
sacks and having their heads smeared with ashes during a prayer rally at Boutwell Auditorium
Boutwell Memorial Auditorium
The Boutwell Memorial Auditorium is a 5,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Birmingham, Alabama, USA. It was built in 1924, as Birmingham's Municipal Auditorium, on a site near City Hall, facing Capitol Park ....
. The display, part of his "Plan 10/30" series of anti-crime rallies, was intended to show humility and restore God's favor to a city wracked with violence. Anticipating complaints from defenders of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment
Establishment Clause of the First Amendment
The Establishment Clause is the first of several pronouncements in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, stating, Together with the Free Exercise Clause The Establishment Clause is the first of several pronouncements in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution,...
, Langford stated that "the Constitution of the United States calls for a separation of church and state – it never said anything about a separation of church from state.”
Pride Week controversy
Langford injured relations with the Birmingham LGBTLGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
community in May 2008 when he refused to sign a proclamation for the annual Central Alabama Pride Parade
Gay pride parade
Pride parades for the LGBT community are events celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender culture. The events also at times serve as demonstrations for legal rights such as same-sex marriage...
, an event that has been held on the city's south side every year since 1989. He refused to allow banners on city property for the event. Langford further stated that it was inappropriate for the government to condone a lifestyle. He was quoted in saying "My policy is don't ask because it's not my business, and don't put me in the position to make it my business."
"I thought I had stated my position very clearly. If I were to sign the permit to put up banners on city right of ways I would be condoning that which I don't condone," he said. "To give a proclamation is totally under the purview of the mayor."
Lambda Legal, an LGBTQ legal advocacy group, and Birmingham civil rights attorney David Gespass have filed suit on behalf of the Central Alabama Pride group against Larry Langford seeking an order from the courts to prohibit the mayor from discriminating against LGBTQ organizations in administering city services. The organization hopes to use a ruling in their favor to discourage further discriminatory practices in Birmingham and other cities where the legal precedent would apply. A settlement agreement was reached on September 1, 2009. The settlement, reached after a federal judge ruled against the city and mayor in their efforts to have the case dismissed, comes after Lambda Legal and local attorney David Gespass filed the lawsuit in August 2008 in the Northern District of Alabama on behalf of CAP based on Mayor Langford’s actions in refusing to allow city workers to attach Pride banners on city light posts. Members of CAP were allowed, however, to hang the banners on their own after paying the expense of bucket trucks. CAP members alleged that they had been allowed in previous years to hang Gay Pride banners displayed in accordance with the city’s practice of attaching banners for a variety of organizations that have held events in the city. However, in May 2008, the mayor announced that he would neither sign a proclamation nor allow city workers to hang the banners based on his religious beliefs that do not “condone that lifestyle choice.” This lawsuit followed initial unsuccessful efforts to negotiate the passage of an even-handed policy. Liberty Counsel
Liberty Counsel
Liberty Counsel is a non-profit public interest law firm and ministry that provides free legal assistance in defense of "Christian religious liberty, the sanctity of human life, and the traditional family." Liberty Counsel is headed by attorney Mathew D. Staver, who founded the legal ministry with...
represented the city and the mayor.
Project proposals
On March 3, 2009, Mayor Langford proposed to the city council that a DVD video be distributed to inner city youth. The video decries "black on black" violence, calling black on black crimes a cultural genocide. The highly controversial DVD, which the local NBC news affiliate referred to as having striking images with racial overtones, depicts images of slavery and the 1960s civil rights movement.In addition to advocating the construction of a domed football stadium, Langford frequently proposed unique and ambitious projects for Birmingham. To overcome the city's mass transit problems, he suggested spending millions on retro-style trolleys. Though Birmingham is more than 250 miles (402.3 km) inland from the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
, Langford proposed that a canal be constructed from the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway
Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway
The Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway is a 234-mile man-made, artificial waterway that extends from the Tennessee River to the junction of the Black Warrior-Tombigbee River system near Demopolis, Alabama, United States. The Tenneessee-Tombigbee Waterway links commercial navigation from the nation’s...
so that cruise ships could dock in the city. He has also suggested building a new structure, modeled after The Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
, which would house the city jail, police headquarters, fire department headquarters, a police academy, and public works offices. Langford told the Birmingham City Council that he intended to file the paperwork, along with the $500,000 fee, necessary for Birmingham to be a contender to host the 2020 Olympics.
Unicorns
On July 21, 2009, Langford gave the entire Birmingham City Council small ceramic unicorns as a response to Birmingham City Council President Carole Smitherman's comment that agreeing to the finance director's projection of available revenue in 2010 was the equivalent of saying, "We believe in unicorns."Following the gift, Langford described how the unicorn was used as a uniter during the reign of King James'
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
who brought together England and Scotland. According to Langford, the gift was meant as a gesture of solidarity.
SEC investigation and lawsuit
In 2007, Langford and two associates were investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission for actions which occurred during his tenure as County Commission president involving allegedly illegal transactions which steered County bondBond (finance)
In finance, a bond is a debt security, in which the authorized issuer owes the holders a debt and, depending on the terms of the bond, is obliged to pay interest to use and/or to repay the principal at a later date, termed maturity...
business to particular companies in exchange for bribes.
On April 30, 2008, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Langford in federal court. The lawsuit alleged Langford accepted more than $156,000 in cash and benefits from Montgomery banker Bill Blount in exchange for county bond business.
Felony conviction and sentencing
On the morning of December 1, 2008, Larry Langford was arrested by the FBI on a 101 count indictment alleging conspiracy, bribery, fraud, money laundering, and filing false tax returns in connection with a long-running bribery scheme. He was led into the courtoom in leg-irons. Also indicted were lobbyist and former state Democratic Party executive director Al LaPierre, and Montgomery investment banker and bond underwriter, and former state Democratic Party chairman, William B. BlountWilliam B. Blount
William B. "Bill" Blount is an investment banker, bond underwriter, and former Alabama Democratic Party chairman. In 2009, he pleaded guilty to federal bribery and conspiracy charges in exchange for testimony against former Birmingham, Alabama, mayor Larry Langford.- Education :Bill Blount is a...
of Parrish & Co.
While Langford was head of the Jefferson County commission, he engaged in a variable rate auction and bond swaps to raise money to help improve the county's sewer system. Langford was convicted of receiving $235,000 in bribes from Blount, some routed through Al LaPierre, to help influence the bond deals. According to the indictment, William Blount helped Langford receive a $50,000 loan, which was used to purchase jewelry, including a Rolex watch, and designer clothes. Blount's firm earned $7.1 million in fees from the bond deals while LaPierre was paid $219,500 by Blount for his help the scheme. Jefferson County banks made approximately $120 million by encouraging the county to refinance nearly all of its bonds using swaps. The bonds resulted in a $3.2 billion sewer debt, contributing to the Jefferson County commissioners voting to declare bankruptcy on November 10, 2011 in what will be the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history. The government is currently seeking $7.6 million in forfeiture from the three men.
After being convicted in a trial in federal court in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Langford is now serving a 15 year federal felony sentence. He is an inmate #27349-001 at FCI Ashland, a Federal prison in Ashland, Kentucky. His projected release date is listed as May 1, 2023.
External links
- Official Birmingham website – Langford page
- Larry Langford profile at Bhamwiki.com