Credibility An Issue With Key State Witness In Ellis Trial

Tuesday the state and Ellis’ attorneys said Kelvin Walton, the man who oversaw vendor contracts under Ellis, lied. Specifically, he lied under oath to a grand jury in 2012 about receiving gifts from contractors.

Ellis’ attorney, Craig Gillen, talked about Walton during opening statements.

“And he raised his right hand, and he took an oath to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and then he lied, and then he lied and then he lied,” Gillen said to the jury.

Walton cooperated with the state in its case against Ellis, in exchange for not being indicted with Ellis. He was the state’s star witness last time around, and his credibility complicated that trial. The defense likens him to “a snitch” who turned his back on his boss and secretly recorded him on behalf of the district attorney to avoid charges for his own corruption.

Assistant District Attorney Lawanda Hodges didn’t dispute Walton’s shortcoming in her opening statement.

“This guy is a documented liar,” Hodges said. “He lied over and over and over again under oath. How can you believe him?”

Hodges told the jury they won’t have to believe him because those secret recordings will show that, in this case, and on this witness stand, he’s telling the truth. She said those recordings will show Walton helped Ellis pressure county vendors for donations to the now-suspended CEO’s 2012 re-election campaign.

So when Walton took the stand on the first day of testimony, Hodges asked him, “How can anyone believe you?”

Walton gave a similar response to the one he gave last time: He’d already lost everything and wanted to come clean.

“I’m coming in here and I’m going to lay it out, to tell everybody everything that I’ve done, but also I want everyone to know I didn’t do this stuff by myself,” he said. “I was direct to do that stuff.”

The bulk of Walton’s testimony is expected Wednesday. Prosecutors plan to start playing some of those secretly recorded conversations Walton had with Ellis.