NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— After his acquittal for his tax fraud trial, District Attorney Jason Williams has a lot to say about the trial and the future of the DA’s Office.
DA Williams sat down one-on-one with WGNO’s Kenny Lopez to share what’s on his mind now that his trial is behind him. A jury found him not guilty on tax fraud charges a few weeks ago.
DA Jason Williams is a fighter. For years he’s fought for the people of New Orleans as a lawyer when no one else would fight for them, and with his own trial—the Government brought against him for tax fraud. He had to fight for himself. Now that he was found not guilty on those tax fraud charges, the fight doesn’t end there, he says he will continue to fight crime in our city.
“At the end of the day, I’ve been fighting for people this long. I for damn sure was going to fight for my own rights,” Jason Williams, Orleans Parish District Attorney said.
It was a long, turbulent, two-year fight. Williams’ tax fraud trial and the tribulations that came along with it.
“It is important for us to all find that voice, that inner strength to fight for ourselves,” he said.
He fought prosecutors who tried to prove that he knowingly took part with his tax preparer, Henry Timothy’s tax fraud.
“I didn’t check Henry Timothy’s credentials. I should have. I took him at his word,” Williams said.
Williams went on to say, “If I hired an electrician to rewire this office, I’m not digging in the walls to see if they did it right. I’m flipping the switch. It has changed the way I trust everyone in my life moving forward.”
As District Attorney he says trial or not, he always was laser focused on fighting for the people in our city.
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“Being a progressive DA, at least the way I see it means being fair and being smart and focusing on the crimes that matter most,” Williams said.
Crimes like carjackings, rapes, and murders as opposed to marijuana charges.
“People when they go to trial, there’s due process, it means there’s a unanimous verdict from a jury, and it means evidence will never be hidden,” he said.
For Williams, once a fighter, always a fighter.
“I really want the public to understand that we’re in this fight with them from the beginning to end,” DA Williams said.
For the complete interview between Kenny Lopez and Jason Williams, watch the video below: