In opening statements yesterday, defense attorneys suggested the men were targeted by politically motivated government lawyers whose case will turn on testimony from two men who stand to gain by cooperating with prosecutors.
Testimony begins today.
Prosecutors allege that Robert W. Whiteside of Brentwood and Floridians Jay A. Jarrell, Michael T. Neeb and Carl Lynn Dick knew Fawcett Memorial Hospital in Port Charlotte, Fla., wasn't entitled to reimbursement for some interest expenses, but kept them over the objections of consultants and then misled outside auditors. Whiteside, Jarrell and Neeb face seven-count indictments. Dick faces a single count. When Whiteside moved to a Nashville corporate job in 1994, he allegedly gave his successor the same warning. In an April 1994 meeting with Schilling, Whiteside, Jarrell and Neeb discussed distracting auditor Thuan Tran, who had raised questions about cost reports, the government alleges.