John Wiley Price Breaks Silence: ‘I'm Going to Have to Testify'

It's been weeks now, sitting at the defendant's table, listening silently as witness after witness takes the stand against him. The listening is bad enough. For John Wiley Price, it's the silence that's hell. If he gets his way — and he usually does — Dallas County's longest serving commissioner won't be silent much longer. "I think I'm going to have to testify," Price said in the only interview he's given since going on trial. He added, though, that he'll follow whatever advice his lawyers give him. It's notoriously hard to beat a federal corruption rap like the one Price is facing. Bribery, bid-fixing, influence peddling — the charges are serious, and witnesses are working five days a week to make the government's case. But Price, never lacking in confidence in a 32-year political career, is sure he can convince the jury the whole thing is a misunderstanding."At the end of the day, it's one thing for people to say and infer -- it's another thing to know what's really there," he said. "I've got the confidence and the faith that all you've got to do is be a purveyor of what the facts are, as opposed to innuendos."   Continue reading...