Welch, Johnson Plead Not Guilty

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Aug. 7, 2000

"Not guilty."

That's the plea from Tom Welch and Dave Johnson in federal court this morning. The pair faces charges in the Olympic bribery scandal, and today they were arraigned.

Welch and Johnson appeared relaxed and confident as they walked into court this morning with their attorneys.

They say they did nothing wrong and are looking forward to telling their side of the story. They maintain that other bid leaders knew about about all aspects of the campaign to win the votes of IOC members, and that in essence they've been singled out for what was a team effort.

Tom Welch/Former SLOC President: "THERE'S NO QUESTION THAT WE DID NOT DO ANYTHING THAT VIOLATED THE LAW. WE DID NOT DO ANYTHING THAT OTHER CITIES HAD NOT DONE, THAT WASN'T PART OF THE PROCESS. WE DIDN'T DO THINGS THAT SHOULD EMBARRASS THIS COMMUNITY. I THINK NOT ONLY WILL WE BE VINDICATED AND PROVEN NOT GUILTY, BUT THAT HISTORY WILL PUT IT IN PERSPECTIVE."

Dave Johnson/Former SLOC Vice President: "I THINK WE WERE INVOLVED IN A CULTURE THAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND. MOST PEOPLE HAVEN'T BEEN OUT OF THE COUNTRY, AND THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO LIVE DIFFERENTLY THAN WE DO AND MAKE DECISIONS DIFFERENTLY THAN WE DO."

Q-WHICH POLITICIANS WERE YOU REFERRING TO A SECOND AGO?

"THE ONES THAT WERE HANDLING THE SCANDAL." Q-THE GOVERNOR? "I THINK THERE WERE A LOT OF POLITICIANS INVOLVED."

Magistrate Samuel Alba set an Oct. 16 trial date, but attorneys for the two men say they would move for a delay. They say it will take at least a year to gather evidence before the trial could start.

The federal magistrate also allowed Welch and Johnson to keep their passports, over the objection of federal prosecutors. Their lawyers say they will need their passports to a attend overseas depositions of witnesses.

After the arraignment, Welch joked that the courthouse may well be considered an official Olympic venue for 2002. No doubt if there's a trial here in the fall of 2001, this will be one busy spot.

Another interesting note, this number came out in court today: 400. That's the number of documents the Justice Department has sifted through. It's another sign that this is a complicated case.