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DETROIT - A former associate in attorney Geoffrey Fieger's firm said Friday that he and his wife each gave $2,000 to Democrat John Edwards' 2004 presidential campaign on the promise that they would be reimbursed by the firm.
Fieger, best known for defending assisted suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian, is running for Michigan attorney general. On Wednesday, FBI and IRS agents raided his offices in suburban Detroit, taking payroll and other financial documents, as well as ticket stubs for an Edwards fundraiser and other campaign materials.
Joseph Bird, an attorney fired from Fieger's firm over the summer, said that about two weeks after he joined the firm in 2003, partner Ven Johnson came into his office, closed the door and told him that he was expected to give to the Edwards campaign.
"I don't know what word to use - "urged,' "strongly suggested,' not quite "threatened,"' Bird said.
Bird, 49, said he brought in the checks the next day and was reimbursed two days later. He said he had "no clue" it was illegal for employers to instruct people to give to a campaign and then reimburse them.
Johnson said Bird's claim was "absolutely, blatantly false."
Fieger denied he had anything to do with contributions by his employees to Edwards' campaign.
Fourteen people listing Fieger's firm as their employer gave money to candidates in the 2004 presidential election. All of them gave to Edwards, according to Political Money Line, a nonpartisan campaign finance tracking system. All of them - including a building manager and a courier supervisor - gave $2,000, the maximum individual contribution allowed in that campaign under federal law.