Ferguson attorney says contractor has 'selective memory' - Los Angeles Local News, Weather, and Traffic

Ferguson attorney says contractor has 'selective memory'

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DETROIT (WJBK) -

Detroit contractor Thomas Hardiman has spent several days on the witness stand discussing his long and complicated history with Bobby Ferguson, but some days he remembers more about what happened than others, and that has Ferguson's attorneys mighty steamed.

"I think I would remember a lot of stuff that he claims he didn't know," said Ferguson attorney Mike Rataj.

Hardiman can be a hard man to pin down, especially when it comes to details about deals.  He testified over and over again Wednesday that he didn't remember or didn't know about certain dealings with the city.  One of those itty-bitty details was how much he was paid for his share in Lakeshore Engineering.

"Once he got on the stand and the government was asking questions, Mr. Hardiman seemed to remember quite a bit, but on cross examination, he didn't remember anything.  So, I call it selective memory," Rataj said.

But Hardiman was certain of one thing, telling jurors that Lakeshore included Bobby Ferguson in projects only because they operated in a culture of fear -- fear of Ferguson and his ties to Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, a man with the power to kill contracts.

Ferguson's attorneys don't buy that and got Hardiman to acknowledge that he and Ferguson talked often about their mutual interests.

"Where's the climate of fear?  You just heard him on the stand.  He wasn't afraid of Bobby Ferguson at all," said Rataj.

Wednesday was Hardiman's fourth day on the stand.  He'll be back on Thursday, and we'll see if again has answers for the prosecution and nothing for the defense.

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