American Notes Louisiana

Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards, no stranger to the gambling tables, took the risky course of allowing his second trial on racketeering and fraud charges to go to the jury without presenting a defense. On Saturday afternoon the Governor won big. The jury found Edwards and four other defendants innocent of all charges, which were connected to a hospital-investment scheme that had netted the flamboyant Governor $1.9 million between his second and third terms. Said a jubilant Edwards: "I feel vindicated."