The lead federal prosecutor investigating ex-Congressman Aaron Schock continues to push for more of his records, saying in a new court filing that Schock has “deceptively refused” to hand over all subpoenaed documents.
Schock, a Peoria Republican, was served with a grand jury subpoena March 31, the day he quit Congress.
Some of the documents not yet turned over are emails between Schock and congressional staffers, his campaign treasurer, his friends and a sister, Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Bass wrote in a filing late Monday.
These emails “cannot possibly be privileged,” Bass said.
The sister is not identified by name, but Shock’s sister Tania Hoerr had been his campaign manager.
Among the documents Schock has turned over in recent weeks are 10,730 financial records. He is to make available by Thursday an additional 2,944 records for a judge to review in chambers to decide whether the government will get them.
Schock, who entered Congress in 2009, has come under scrutiny for his use of campaign and taxpayer dollars. Campaign and congressional records are at issue.
He is asserting that some documents are covered by attorney-client privilege and other legal protections.
Since he was subpoenaed, Schock has identified seven lawyers as his counsel, the prosecutor said. His lead attorney is George Terwilliger of Washington, D.C., and other defense lawyers are working out of Chicago and Davenport, Iowa.
His lawyers were able to copy all the records from Schock’s various former offices in a relatively short time, Bass said.
The prosecutor said a Feb. 18 email “regarding travel records” between Schock and his former executive assistant was a “glaring” example of a communication that “cannot possibly be privileged.”
On June 4, more than a dozen federal agents converged on Schock’s campaign office in Peoria and seized documents and at least one computer during a 6 1/2-hour search, the Journal Star newspaper said.
Schock, who once lived large on social media, came under heavy scrutiny after a Washington Post story Feb. 2 about his “Downton Abbey”-style office redecoration. A Schock aide tried to quash the story and asserted the designer had worked for free, but Schock later reimbursed the government for her work.
The episode triggered an extensive examination of Schock for what emerged to be excessive reimbursements for auto mileage, questionable travel on private aircraft and unreported trips abroad. His ties to donor-friends and real estate deals with them also have triggered interest.
He repaid the government a total of $122,590, including more than $86,000 paid for mileage, before leaving office.
The battle over documents came to light in July after the government sought to have Schock found in contempt of court for not complying with his subpoena, but no such finding has been made.
Defense attorneys have until Sept. 30 to respond to the latest government filing.
Schock represented the state’s Republican-leaning 18th Congressional District.
His successor, Rep.-elect Darin LaHood, a Republican who won a special election last week, will be sworn in Thursday in the House of Representatives with his father, former U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood, in attendance. The elder LaHood, also a Republican, was Schock’s predecessor and later served as transportation secretary under Democratic President Barack Obama.
First elected in 2008, the telegenic Schock had been a rising star in the GOP until he stepped down three months into a new two-year term. His conduct has been examined by a federal grand jury meeting secretly in Springfield since April. Several former Schock staffers have testified at the closed-door proceedings.
The legal tussle over what Schock must release is being heard in Springfield by U.S. District Judge Sue Myerscough, an Obama nominee who took the federal bench in 2011 after serving as a judge on state circuit and appellate courts.
Twitter @KatherineSkiba
