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	Juror in Diocesan Kickback Trial Wanted to Hear More from Pilla Diocesan Kickback Testimony Limited By James F. McCarty Plain Dealer October 5, 2007 http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1191573036232320.xml&coll=2 Jurors in the diocesan kickback trial left federal court wishing they had heard more testimony from the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland's hierarchy, one of the jurors said Wednesday. The jury had more than enough evidence Tuesday to convict Anton Zgoznik, a former church accountant, of paying kickbacks to his boss at the diocese and defrauding the church, said the juror, who requested anonymity. A secretly recorded, profanity-riddled conversation between Zgoznik and his former business partner helped the jury to see a different side of the pious John Carroll University graduate who acted like an altar boy in court, the juror said. "That tape was a defining moment in the case," the juror said. "We were able to hear the two Antons. It showed his real personality. He was trapped with no place to go." During three days of deliberations, the jurors couldn't help wondering why Bishop Anthony Pilla was unaware of secret payments being made to diocesan employees, and why defense attorney Robert Rotatori didn't press the bishop harder during cross-examination. They also suspected the Rev. John Wright knew more than he testified to during two days on the witness stand, the juror said. "It would have been nice to hear more from the bishop, and for him to have answered some of the questions," the juror said. "He played deaf, dumb and blind up there. "The defense couldn't ask any probing questions, and there was no paper trail in evidence for [Rotatori] to question him about," the juror said. Rotatori praised the jury for its insight into a key behind-the-scenes legal dispute. "We wanted diocesan records that we weren't able to get, and we were restricted from going into some of the bishop's special transactions," Rotatori said. "After that, there wasn't a lot left to question the bishop about." Rotatori said he suspected Pilla had dozens of off-the-books bank accounts containing hundreds of thousands of dollars, which the lawyer sought to introduce as evidence of a culture of secrecy at the diocese. "The diocese opposed turning over the records, and the judge upheld their challenge," Rotatori said. Diocesan attorneys said the accounts were the bishop's personal savings and the defense had no right to see them. The juror said he and his colleagues also doubted the veracity of some of Wright's testimony, especially his failure to recall signing $270,000 in bonus checks for Joseph Smith, his successor as chief financial officer and top lawyer at the diocese. Smith, 50, of Avon, is scheduled to stand trial next year for defrauding the diocese and for accepting more than $1 million in suspected kickbacks -- $784,000 from Zgoznik, 40, of Kirtland Hills.
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