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Judge rules for open testimony: Plowman's deposition to be public in Tate case
The question was whether Loudoun Commonwealth's Attorney Jim Plowman's deposition in the case against former state Senate candidate Mark D. Tate should be public.The answer given by Loudoun County Circuit Court Judge D. Thomas Horne was yes.
Horne's ruling Aug. 4 reversed a March decision by another circuit court judge that would have allowed Plowman to be questioned in private about when evidence against Tate was discovered.
Tate, a Middleburg restaurateur and Purcellville resident, ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for the Virginia Senate's 27th district seat in 2003 and 2007.
He has been indicted for election fraud twice, and currently faces nine charges of election fraud.
More than a year ago, Plowman led initial investigations into Tate's campaign finance reports, later recusing himself because he supported Tate's opponent, now Sen. Jill Holtzman Vogel (R-western Loudoun).
In March, Judge Thomas A. Fortkort, of Vienna, approved private questioning of Plowman, but in June, Horne asked members of the media to submit their arguments on the matter.
Nine news organizations answered the call.
“I was just astonished when I heard a public figure wanted to give private testimony in a case against another public official,” Loudoun Easterner editor Martin Casey said.
At the Aug. 5 hearing in front of an audience largely composed of media members, Horne said there was no reason to allow for the private questioning of Plowman.
“Such a thing is unknown to the justice system,” Horne said. Plowman's deposition, however, might not even be necessary, he added.
Questions directed at Plowman would focus on the first three indictments against Tate, those dealing with his campaign filings from 2003 to 2006.
Tate's defense argues that the statute of limitations has expired on the 2003 misfilings. But special prosecutor Matt Britton, who is trying the case, said Tate had filed amendments to the reports at a later date, putting the filings within the legal time limit.
A separate hearing to discuss what Horne called the “question of law and not a question of fact” dealing with the discovery of the misfilings is scheduled for Aug. 15.
Tate's weeklong trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 8.
Contact the reporter at hhobbs@timespapers.com
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