State Rep. Jack Williams arrested on bribery charges

State Rep. Jack Williams was arrested Monday morning on bribery charges. Photo courtesy of Williams’ campaign website.

State Rep. Jack Williams, R-Vestavia Hills, was arrested Monday morning on federal bribery charges. Also arrested were former Alabama Republican Party Chairman Marty Conners and G. Ford Gilbert, the owner of the California-based Trina Healthcare, according to a press release by the Department of Justice.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, the three were involved in a “public corruption scheme,” which involved Gilbert paying then State House Majority Leader Micky Hammon to pass a 2016 bill that would require Blue Cross and Blue Shield to cover diabetes treatments provided by Gilbert’s three Alabama clinics. Gilbert hired Connors to lobby for the bill, and both recruited Williams to hold a public hearing on the bill.

A press release by the Department of Justice alleges that “Williams also knew of the payments to Hammon and acted in part to help Hammon, who, as everyone in the scheme knew, was experiencing grave financial problems.”

Williams had announced that he would not run for the State House again, instead choosing to pursue the District 5 seat on the Jefferson County Commission. Now, if convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

More coverage of this story is available through the Montgomery Advertiser, BirminghamWatch, and AL.com.