Oliver L. Robinson Jr., Bribery Conspiracy, Alabama 2023

BIRMINGHAM – The U.S. Attorney’s Office today charged former Alabama legislator Oliver L. Robinson Jr. with accepting bribes from a Birmingham lawyer and an Alabama coal company executive in exchange for advocating their employers’ opposition to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions in North Birmingham.

A 57-year-old resident of Birmingham, Robinson represented Alabama’s House District 58 from 1998 until he resigned on November 30, 2016. The information filed in U.S. District Court charges Robinson with conspiracy, bribery, and honest services wire fraud for accepting a valuable contract between the Birmingham law firm Balch & Bingham and the Oliver Robinson Foundation.

The contract was allegedly designed to influence and reward Robinson for using his position as a member of the Alabama House of Representatives, vice-chairman of the Jefferson County Legislative Delegation, and an elected representative of citizens of Birmingham to pressure and advise public officials to oppose EPA’s prioritization and expansion of a North Birmingham EPA Superfund site.

According to the information, the Birmingham lawyer and the Alabama coal company executive offered Robinson a valuable contract between the Birmingham law firm Balch & Bingham and the Oliver Robinson Foundation in exchange for advocating their employers’ opposition to EPA actions in North Birmingham. The contract was allegedly designed to influence and reward Robinson for using his position to pressure and advise public officials to oppose EPA’s prioritization and expansion of a North Birmingham EPA Superfund site.

Robinson, a former Alabama legislator, is accused of betraying the public’s trust for personal gain. The information also includes fraud charges connected to campaign contributions and to contributions that Robinson solicited for events he sponsored. The final count in the information charges Robinson with tax evasion for the 2015 calendar year.

In conjunction with the information, the government also filed a plea agreement with Robinson. Along with agreeing to plead guilty to the charges, Robinson agrees never again to seek elected office and pledges to pay restitution and forfeiture.

The case gets at the heart of public corruption in Alabama, said Acting U.S. Attorney Robert O. Posey. ‘Well-funded special interests offer irresistible inducements to public officials. In exchange, the officials represent the interests of those who pay rather than the interests of those who vote.’

Related Federal Cases