Ethics trial for Alabama House speaker set to begin

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A trial will begin Tuesday that could cut through Alabama politics like a coroner's knife, with all the grisly revelations that follow. Lee County Circuit Judge Jacob Walker should hear opening arguments in Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard’s trial on 23 felony ethics counts, after a possible hearing dealing with outstanding motions in the case Tuesday morning. Prosecutors with the Alabama Attorney General's Office say Hubbard used his public offices — first as Alabama Republican Party chairman, then as House Speaker — to secure consulting clients and business investments in violation of the Alabama Ethics Act. Hubbard, a Republican from Auburn, maintains his innocence and his attorneys say the transactions were proper.