Former GM/UAW Workers Convicted of Extortion Lose Appeal

According to a recent article in the Detroit News two retired United Auto Workers officials could be facing some serious time in prison. Their bid to overturn appeals was lost on extortion convictions stemming from a 14-year-old strike at a GM truck plant. The two employees in questions were Donny G. Douglas and Jay D. Campbell. Both were sent back to federal court in Detroit for re-sentencing after their appeal was denied.

A jury in Detroit had previously given Douglas and Campbell a conviction of demanding that two unqualified men, one being Campbell’s son Gordon, and the other being Todd Fante, the son of another UAW official, be hired in high-paying UAW positions if the strike was to end. “I am disappointed in the result but I have not had the opportunity to determine what the next step is that we are going to pursue,” Campbell lawyer Harold Z. Gurewitz said today. Gurewitz said he is worried about the prospect of a possible prison sentence.

The case will be sent back again to federal court in Detroit. Once there the amount of damages suffered to GM will be factored into the sentencing. According to the opinion given in the denail of the appeal GM lost $30,475 in salaries spent on Cambell’s son Gordon and Todd Fante. That was the amount GM had spent befire GM began evaluating and retaining workers based on their work performance. GM also spent $450,000 in legal fees and other expenses.