Atlanta courthouse killing suspect denied bail

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- A judge denied bail Tuesday morning for Brian Nichols, the suspect in the Atlanta killings of a judge, a deputy sheriff, a court reporter and a federal agent.
Chief Magistrate Judge Frank Cox -- of neighboring Cobb County -- presided over the hearing, which was held at the Fulton County Jail where Nichols, 33, is being held in maximum security.
Nichols entered the white, cinder-block jailhouse courtroom to the sound of clicking news cameras. Nearly 20 deputies were on hand.
Nichols wore a blue jump suit and blue slippers. His hands and legs were shackled.
Defense attorneys Chris Adams and Gary Parker said Nichols wished to remain silent.
When the judge asked Nichols whether he had any questions or a statement, Nichols replied: "Not at this time."
Tuesday's appearance was the first time the public has seen Nichols since he was captured Saturday in a suburb northeast of Atlanta.
Prosecutor Michele McCutcheon said the state intended to file four charges of murder -- as well as felony escape charges and "other felonies" -- against Nichols at a later date.
The judge read previous rape charges against Nichols, on which he is being held while prosecutors arrange formal charges on the murders.
"It's really just kind of a place-holding situation," said CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin.
"This will be an investigation of some complexity given the sheer number of crimes that he's likely to be charged with. So this is a process that's only going to get started today and probably will last several months," Toobin said.
After the hearing, Adams spoke to reporters. "This is a time of grief and mourning for the courthouse community," Adams said. "We're going to respect that. There will be plenty of time for us later to lay out our legal arguments and examine the evidence and search for answers in this case."
A few blocks away at Fulton County Courthouse, employees attended a memorial service for the three people killed at the courthouse on Friday morning.

Nichols statement

On Monday, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard told CNN's Paula Zahn that Nichols had made a statement to police after his arrest Saturday.
"I can say he gave a statement, and he was cooperative," Howard said, adding that his duties as prosecutor prevented him from going into further detail.
Howard said he saw Nichols shortly after he was taken into custody and he appeared to be "someone who was proud of what he had done -- that he did not show remorse."
"From the responses that I was able to see personally, that's the impression that I received," the district attorney said.
Prosecutors have not said if they will seek the death penalty against Nichols, but Howard said the shootings were among "the most horrendous crimes" local law enforcement had ever seen.
A judge declared a mistrial Monday in Nichols' retrial on the rape, aggravated sodomy and false imprisonment charges. Nichols' retrial was in progress when the shootings occurred.
At the courthouse on Friday, police said Nichols overpowered a deputy sheriff while they were en route to his retrial. He escaped and walked to a courtroom, shooting and killing Fulton County Superior Court Judge Rowland W. Barnes and court reporter Julie Ann Brandau, police said. During his escape Nichols also shot and killed sheriff's deputy Sgt. Hoyt Teasley.
Police said Nichols then carjacked several vehicles -- injuring a local newspaper reporter -- and then boarded a MARTA subway train north to Atlanta's Buckhead neighborhood.
Authorities said Nichols then shot and killed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent David Wilhelm at his home which was under construction near the MARTA station. Next, Nichols stole Wilhelm's truck -- police said -- and drove it to an apartment complex to the northeast in Gwinnett County. There, he took Ashley Smith, 26, hostage, police said. (Full story)
Smith said she was taken captive early Saturday morning, but she gained Nichols' trust by talking to him about her 5-year-old daughter, God and hope. He later gave himself up to police outside Smith's apartment. (Full story)
Smith downplayed her efforts Monday night.
"Throughout my time with Mr. Nichols, I continued to rely [on] my faith in God. God has helped me through tough times before, and he'll help me now," she told reporters at a news conference in her hometown of Augusta, Georgia.

Trenton, New Jersey, mayor arrested on corruption charges

(CNN) -- The mayor of New Jersey's capital city was arrested Monday on corruption charges after being accused of accepting bribes during an undercover operation, authorities said.

The charges against Trenton Mayor Tony Mack, 46, his brother, Ralphiel Mack, 39, and business associate Joseph A. "JoJo" Giorgianni, 63, stem from an alleged kickback scheme to sell city-owned land to investors for significantly less than the assessed value.

Mack and his brother, the head football coach at Trenton Central High School, both were released on $150,000 bail and slipped into a city vehicle after a court appearance. They were ordered to surrender their passports.

"The evidence appears to be, at this point, weak as far as Mayor Mack is concerned," Mark Davis, Tony Mack's attorney, told CNN on Monday evening. "The complaint is just full of allegations, that's all they are."

A bond hearing for Giorgianni, a sandwich shop owner, was postponed because of unrelated drug conspiracy charges.

The investigation "revealed evidence of a conspiracy among these defendants and others to corrupt certain functions of Trenton City government in favor of purported developer seeking to build a parking garage on city owned property in exchange for cash payments totaling approximately $119,000," according to a complaint filed in federal court.

From the archives: Ex-mayor in New Jersey gets two years in prison

The three defendants -- who were charged specifically with conspiracy to corrupt commerce by extortion -- employed intermediaries, "used code words and limited discussions of the scheme over the telephone" to avoid detection, the complaint said.

For example, Giorgianni would use the term "Uncle Remus" in conversations with the mayor to connote when he had received a cash payment, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said.

The charges stemmed from a two-year FBI investigation that incorporated two informants cooperating with law enforcement. Fishman said at least one of those moles wore a wire to record conversations for the FBI.

At a news conference before the bond hearing, Fishman pointed to repeated cases of corruption that his office has uncovered.

"Time and again, we have seen public officials in New Jersey who are all too willing to sell their power and betray the public's trust," he said.

Any trial related to Mack's case would not likely occur until next year, according to Fishman.

Mack's office declined to comment when reached by CNN. But Davis, the mayor's lawyer, stressed his client hasn't been indicted yet and should "continue to enjoy the presumption of innocence."

Based on discussions they've had, Davis said his "understanding is that (Mack) is going to remain in his (mayoral) post and continue in his official duties," as the legal case proceeds against him. The lawyer said he expects a grand jury will consider the case within 30 days.

In a separate complaint that Fishman stressed was not connected to the Macks, the government charged Giorgianni and eight others with conspiracy to distribute the highly addictive prescription painkiller oxycodone.

Fishman said Giorgianni used his business, JoJo's Steakhouse, as a front for a drug dealing operation. He's accused of storing the narcotics there, distributing the pills to dealers, then processing the cash exchanged for the painkillers.

Two months ago, agents raided the homes of Mack, his brother, and Giorgianni, before raiding Trenton's City Hall the next day.

Mack responded to the July raids by saying he had "not violated the public trust in any way, nor have I violated any of my public duties."

A Democrat who began his term in July 2010, Mack has been beleaguered by questions about public finance and accusations of cronyism.

In May, Deputy Mayor Paul Sigmund IV was arrested and charged with heroin possession and assaulting a police officer, which led to Sigmund's prompt resignation.