Former Atlanta Airport Chief Says Campbell Steered Contracts

Defense lawyers scrambled to block her testimony, but the former head of the Atlanta airport testified Thursday that Bill Campbell ordered her to steer certain city contracts to companies owned by the former mayor's supporters.

The prosecutors in Campbell's federal corruption trial say that some of those companies paid Campbell thousands of dollars in exchange for getting lucrative city contracts.

Angela Gittens, former general manager of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, told the jury that the mayor gave orders to halt the rebidding process on two contracts that were facing expiration. The companies seeking the contracts --- one to supply dirt for a fifth runway and another to provide airport vending machines --- were owned by Campbell supporters who helped build his campaign war chest, the prosecution says.

Gittens didn't connect Campbell to bribes, but prosecutors used her testimony to help piece together the government's contention that Campbell ran City Hall as a criminal enterprise, including awarding bids to city contractors who paid him off.

Gittens testified that, in 1998, she refused to follow Campbell's orders to sign a contract with developer C.R. "Ronnie" Thornton, whose company supplied dirt for the fifth runway. Gittens said she wanted to explore other options that could save the city money and open up the project to competitive bidders.

"He told me I should go ahead and make the deal," Gittens said of a conversation with the mayor. "I told him I couldn't do that. It would violate federal law as well as city law."

What she didn't know was that Thornton had funneled illegal contributions to Campbell's 1997 re-election campaign. Thornton eventually was awarded a $2 million emergency contract to provide the dirt.

Thornton has told federal investigators that Campbell crony Rickey Rowe had urged Thornton to provide campaign cash if he wanted the mayor to look favorably on his contract proposal. In 2001, Thornton pleaded guilty to violating federal banking laws to conceal $130,000 in illegal contributions to Campbell's 1997 re-election campaign.

Thornton, who was sentenced to serve two years probation and pay a $10,000 fine, underwent surgery this week but is expected to testify sometime next week.

Gittens also told the jurors that the mayor stopped airport officials from rebidding a vending machines contract held by Rowe's company, Rowe Concessions.

Gittens testified that, a couple of months after she refused to award Thornton the dirt contract in 1998, Campbell told her he wasn't going to renew her own contract as airport manager.

The defense objected to Gittens' testimony before she took the witness stand and repeatedly interrupted her testimony with more objections.

"He has a right, as mayor, to decide" about contracts, lead defense lawyer Billy Martin told the judge during arguments out of the earshot of the jury. "It's not intervening."

Prosecutor Russell Vineyard told U.S. District Judge Richard Story that Gittens' testimony was important to show the implementation of the mayor's alleged credo: "I will reward my friends and punish my enemies."

On cross-examination, the defense team repeatedly attacked Gittens.

Martin asked whether Gittens, who completed her testimony Thursday, had a confrontational management style and disputes with Delta Air Lines, the biggest carrier at Hartsfield-Jackson, while in Atlanta and with another major airline after she moved to Miami to work for that city's airport.

"You were terminated in Miami for the same issues with American, right?" Martin asked.

Gittens, who is now in the private sector, said that wasn't what happened, but Martin walked off and returned to the defense table before she explained.

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