John Edwards Acquitted of one charge, jury deadlocked on 5 others | Eastern North Carolina Now

   Democrat Presidential Candidate John Edwards will not be serving any jail time on the one charge that was at the center of his indictment that he funneled campaign funds to hide his relationship with his mistress, Rielle Hunter. The former United States Senator from North Carolina may; however, face future prosecution by US Attorney's of the 5 remaining charges, by virtue of an impossibly deadlocked jury, that were declared in mistrial by U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles, should they feel that a second trial could decide a clear verdict - guilty or not guilty on the remaining five deadlocked counts.

    The former United States presidential candidate, Democrat John Edwards, in a moment of contrition from the steps of the US District Court in Greensboro, North Carolina, stated, "While I did not do anything illegal, or know that I did, I did; however, do an awful, awful lot that was wrong."

   This statement was probably one of the grandest truths ever stated by the personal injury attorney, and his various candidacies, and service to the State of North Carolina will serve as the butt of many jokes, and colorful anecdotes for many years to come. What is truly a sad tale of excessive hubris by a poor quality politician, who turned his back on his ailing, dying wife to chase illicit sexual encounters and his dream of the presidency, has conversely been made into a humorous series of low stories, and snide commentary, much of it egregiously funny.

   Egregiously funny?

   Quite possibly made funny because: When Edwards decided that he wanted to become a United States Senator from a large and influential state, he did not take the job, he was elected to, at all seriously, and instead chose to leverage this position to twice seek the highest elected office to this world's most powerful nation, with the oldest representative government in modern world history. Heaped upon his impossibly poor performance as Senator Edwards, was his known sexual indiscretions with his campaign staffer, Rielle Hunter, the illegitimate child born out of wedlock, and then the resulting series of lies and the elaborate cover-up by this former North Carolina trial lawyer.

   This bad business of excessive hubris, and bad governing from a good state, by one irreverent man, who, sadly, had an inconsistent view of himself, his state and this nation, and how he fit within, will be the grist of late night comedy, and low stories for some time in the near and intermediate future.

   Makes this humble North Carolina man proclaim, "Johnny, I'm sorry we knew ye."