RALEIGH — Ruffin Poole, an aide to former Gov. Mike Easley, pleaded not guilty Monday to 57 federal corruption charges.
Poole appeared in a federal courtroom Monday for his formal arraignment. His plea was the first time Poole had personally and publicly responded to the charges against him.
U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle read the list of charges to Poole and asked him, "Do you plead guilty or not guilty?"
In each case, Poole said, "Not Guilty."
Poole is charged with 57 counts related to receiving money, trips and gifts from developers while he was also taking official action to ensure that environmental permits were processed for the developers, according to the indictment against him.
The formal arraignment Monday sets the stage for a trial, although the key question for Poole is when that trial would be held.
To read the complete article, visit www.newsobserver.com.