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What can we expect from the trial of former Cincinnati City Council member P.G. Sittenfeld?

pg sittenfeld
Courtesy of WCPO

The trial of former Cincinnati City Council member and one-time mayoral hopeful P.G. Sittenfeld on federal corruption charges starts today.

The closely watched case — along with two other public corruption cases of former city councilmembers — upended Cincinnati's political scene when federal agents arrested Sittenfeld in late November 2020 on charges he solicited and accepted campaign donations in exchange for favorable votes on development deals.

Sittenfeld has denied he is guilty of the charges and has put up an active legal defense in the months leading up to his jury trial. As that trial gets underway, what are his chances of beating the charges? What kind of damage has already been done to Cincinnati's faith in its local government? Could revelations during the trial further tear our city's civic fabric? And how can the public learn to trust its government again?

University of Cincinnati School of Public and International Affairs Political Science Associate Professor David Niven, Ph.D.; National Civic League President Doug Linkhart; and WCPO 9 I-Team Reporter Paula Christian join Cincinnati Edition to discuss these and other issues swirling around the case.

Listen to Cincinnati Edition live at noon M-F. Audio for this segment will be uploaded after 4 p.m. ET.

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