Former TN House Speaker Casada Files Motion To Dismiss Federal Corruption Charges As Trial Looms

Casada and his former aide Cade Cothren’s federal trial is scheduled for Oct. 3.

Photo: Former House Speaker Glen Casada Photo Credit: John Partipilo

By Sam Stockard [Tennessee Lookout -CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] –

Former House Speaker Glen Casada wants federal charges against him dismissed before an October trial, claiming lawmakers who did business with a new vendor called Phoenix Solutions received the services they requested.

Federal prosecutors accuse Casada — who no longer serves in the House — of covering up the identity of the vendor, which was secretly run by disgraced former staffer Cade Cothren, and directing House business to him in return for kickbacks. He filed a motion for dismissal this week in U.S. District Court.

Phoenix Solutions, which used a New Mexico mailing address, did nearly $52,000 worth of work for Republican lawmakers, handling their state-funded constituent mail services, in addition to campaign mailers. The vendor also did more than $200,000 worth of work for the House Republican Caucus, but that is not part of the indictment.

“The indictment does not, and cannot, allege that any individual who utilized the services of Phoenix Solutions did not receive exactly what they bargained for – mailers sent to constituents. Nor can the indictment allege that Phoenix Solutions failed to do exactly what it was represented to do – produce mailers for constituent mailings,” says a memo supporting Casada’s motion to dismiss.

It contends the indictment tries to “criminalize” the alleged failure to disclose who owned the vendor, in addition to conflicts of interest, to “impermissibly broaden the scope of both applicable federal criminal law and government prosecutorial authority.”

The filing contends the charges against Casada are inflated, including accusations he was involved directly or aided in a conspiracy to steal federal funds; bribery and kickbacks involving federal funds; honest services wire fraud; the use of a fictitious name to commit fraud; and money laundering. 

The federal indictment claims Casada and former Rep. Robin Smith, a one-time state Republican Party chair who pleaded guilty and is cooperating with prosecutors, concealed Cothren’s identity as he ran Phoenix Solutions. Otherwise, Cothren, who had left his post as Casada’s chief of staff during a racist and sexist text messaging scandal, wouldn’t have been hired to do the work for Republican lawmakers. Some lawmakers told the Tennessee Lookout they wouldn’t have had Phoenix Solutions do the work if they knew who was involved.

Casada became House speaker in 2019 but resigned seven months after a no-confidence vote by the House Republican Caucus over racist and sexist texts and complaints about his heavy-handed management style. He won one more election to his Williamson County seat but left the House last year and ran an unsuccessful campaign for a job as the county’s clerk. 

About the Author: Sam Stockard is a veteran Tennessee reporter and editor, having written for the Daily News Journal in Murfreesboro, where he served as lead editor when the paper won an award for being the state’s best Sunday newspaper two years in a row. He has led the Capitol Hill bureau for The Daily Memphian. His awards include Best Single Editorial from the Tennessee Press Association. Follow Stockard on Twitter @StockardSam