Perzel on Computergate Everyone crossed the line

By Angela Couloumbis INQUIRER HARRISBURG BUREAU

HARRISBURG - There were only glimpses of the legendary brass and bluster of the old John M. Perzel - the one who for years used an iron fist to run the state House of Representatives - when he took the stand Tuesday in the political corruption case known as Computergate. Instead, the former Republican powerhouse from Northeast Philadelphia, who once controlled the flow of legislation and helped seal countless deals in the Capitol, was largely subdued in his new role as the state attorney general's star witness. Facing a maximum of 24 years in prison, Perzel dutifully answered questions over almost four hours about an alleged plot within the House Republican caucus to use millions in taxpayer dollars for political gain. He even took the blame for the scheme once or twice, admitting it was his vision to use pricey technology to win elections - technology paid for by the public. "I know now I committed a crime," Perzel, 61, told the jury of six men and six women. But he didn't do it alone, he testified. Perzel alleged that it was no secret in top House Republican circles that taxpayer money was being used to buy sophisticated computer programs that were then used to help GOP candidates win campaigns. "Everyone knew," he said, adding later: "The management people, the people at the top of the hierarchy knew . . .. Everyone crossed the line." Perzel was initially charged with nine others in the case, but pleaded guilty in late August to conspiracy and other charges. Two people now remain at the defendants' table: former state Rep. Brett Feese of Lycoming County and his onetime aide, Jill Seaman. They face theft, conspiracy, conflict of interest, hindering apprehension, and obstruction charges. Getting Perzel to cooperate was considered a prosecutorial coup for the Attorney General's Office. He would, the thinking went, be able to weave for jurors a master puppeteer's view of how he and others allegedly conspired between 2000 and 2008 to tap upward of $10 million in taxpayer money for campaign-related software programs from private contractors. The programs had catchy names, such as The Edge and Candidate Connect, that allowed House GOP caucus members to mine specialized data on voters - everything from where they shopped for groceries to whether they owned a gun - to tailor campaign literature, election-day tactics, and other campaign activities. On the stand Tuesday, Perzel delivered, explaining the goal behind the push to use cutting-edge technology for elections: Power. Plain and simple. The party that held the majority in the House, he told jurors, ruled everything, including committee chairmanships and what bills were voted on. "It's winner-take-all," said Perzel, who spent three decades in the House until he was defeated in 2010. Still, Perzel acknowledged on cross-examination that Feese, in particular, did not attend meetings or go on trips to meet with the private contractors that were developing the computer software for elections. He insisted, though, that Feese, who controlled the House GOP's fund-raising arm, was among those who "had to have known."

"They saw the election-day operation, and the programs," Perzel said under questioning by Senior Deputy Attorney General Patrick Blessington. "Everyone was sitting around using them." As for Seaman, Perzel said he had no evidence she knew anything about what was unfolding. Perhaps Perzel's most tantalizing testimony was about people not seated at the defense table. At one point, he was asked about current House Speaker Sam Smith (R., Jefferson), who was not charged in the Computergate case. Perzel testified that Smith, then also in the House GOP leadership, controlled the caucus' checkbook and had to sign off on the computer-software contracts. "Sam would do whatever I asked him to do," said Perzel. Prosecutors did not ask any follow-up questions, and Perzel declined to elaborate as he left the courthouse later with one of his attorneys, Fortunato Perri. Smith would not comment on the testimony. He is on a list of potential witnesses to be called by defense attorneys. "It's an active trial, and we are not going to talk about it during the trial," spokesman Steve Miskin said.