Richard Scrushy | |
---|---|
Born | Richard Marin Scrushy August 1952 (age 72) |
Occupation(s) | Businessman founder and former chairman and chief executive officer of HealthSouth Corporation, former chairman and chief executive officer of MedPartners, Inc. |
Criminal status | Released |
Spouse(s) | Debbie Cody (197?–197?) Karon Brooks (1978–1996) Leslie Anne Jones (1997–present) |
Criminal charge | Birmingham trial: 36 charges of fraud, false corporate reportings, and making false statements Not Guilty Montgomery trial: bribery and mail fraud Guilty |
Penalty | Birmingham trial: acquitted Montgomery trial: 82 months in federal prison, three years' probation, United States Dollars $267,000 in restitution, a fine of $150,000 and 500 hours of community service |
Richard Marin Scrushy[1] (born August 1952[2]) is an American businessman and convicted felon. He is the founder of HealthSouth Corporation, a global healthcare company based in Birmingham, Alabama.[3] In 2004, following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Scrushy was criminally charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).[4] Scrushy was charged with 36 of the original 85 counts but was acquitted of all charges on June 28, 2005, after a jury trial in Birmingham.[5]
Four months after his acquittal in Birmingham, on October 28, 2005, Scrushy was indicted by a federal grand jury in Montgomery, Alabama, along with former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman.[6][7] The indictment included 30 counts of money laundering, extortion, obstruction of justice, racketeering, and bribery.[6][7] Although the new charges were filed a month before the previous trial ended, Scrushy's attorneys accused prosecutors of filing charges as retaliation for Scrushy's acquittal.[7] Scrushy pleaded not guilty to all charges, but was convicted along with Siegelman in June 2006.[6][8]
On May 7, 2009, Scrushy was transferred from the Texas jail where he had been incarcerated and placed in the custody of the Shelby County Jail in Columbiana, Alabama.[9] Scrushy was returned to Alabama in order to testify in a new civil trial in the Jefferson County Circuit Court brought against him by shareholders of HealthSouth who sought damages related to Scrushy's trial and conviction.[10] On June 18, 2009, Judge Allwin E. Horn ruled that Scrushy was responsible for HealthSouth's fraud, and ordered him to pay $2.87 billion.[11] On July 25, 2012, Scrushy was released from federal custody.[12][13]