In a federal court today, Kevin Geddings maintained that he simply made a mistake, even as a judge prepared to sentence him to four years in prison.
It was consistent. He has argued from the start that he didn't do anything wrong.
In a letter to the editor printed in the N&O on Oct. 19, 2005, Geddings called an editorial that called for him to resign "reckless editorial journalism" by a "bunch of shrill and defeated newspaper editorial writers" trying to limit the lottery's effectiveness:
It is shrewd politics on the part of this newspaper's leadership: scream scandal at the top of your lungs before the first lottery products reach consumers and you might create a weakened lottery organization fearful of bold marketing and product placement because of perceived "bad" press clippings.
In the letter, he vowed not to step down from the lottery commission. Geddings stepped down less than two weeks later, and a jury found him guilty of five counts of mail fraud almost a year later.
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"I won't resign from the lottery commission," letter to the editor from Kevin Geddings, The News & Observer, Oct. 19, 2005.
Memo to the anti-education lottery zealots at The N&O editorial board: I will not resign.
The paper is trying to limit the success and effectiveness of North Carolina's new education lottery by aiming tabloid-style opinion journalism directly at the lottery in its early formative stages. It is shrewd politics on the part of this newspaper's leadership: scream scandal at the top of your lungs before the first lottery products reach consumers and you might create a weakened lottery organization fearful of bold marketing and product placement because of perceived "bad" press clippings.
This is one lottery commissioner who will not be bullied into submission by The N&O. I know that in "PR School" they teach you not to pick a fight with large media conglomerates that buy ink by the tanker truck, but this newspaper has crossed the line into reckless editorial journalism with your call (in an Oct. 18 editorial) for me to resign from the lottery commission.
You maintain that my decades-long friendship and previous business relationship with a lottery services company worker is reason for me to no longer volunteer on the commission. I am confident that Erskine Bowles knows people who do business with the UNC system; should he now not become UNC's next president? If someone serving as a highway commissioner has done business with or has had a friendship with a road-building company manager, should he or she now resign from the DOT board?
On the day I was appointed to the lottery commission I openly acknowledged my friendship and previous business dealings with a lottery company worker. I stated to this newspaper that I had even subleased office space to this person years before he went to work in the lottery services industry.
I respect your strong opposition to the implementation of the N.C. Education Lottery. I am in awe of your ability to destroy a person's reputation via innuendo and selective reporting. However, I am also committed to working with my fellow lottery commissioners and our chairman, Dr. Charles Sanders, to generate billions of new dollars for North Carolina's public schools. That goal is too worthwhile to be weakened by a bunch of shrill and defeated newspaper editorial writers.
Kevin Geddings
N.C. Education Lottery Commissioner
Charlotte
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