One witness recalled being paid on five separate occasions, carefully listing each location and the corresponding amounts.
Another confidently described two payments, both made in the same Walmart parking lot.
A third person hesitated, struggling to recall specific details. After some effort, he could only remember that he had been paid between $40,000 and $50,000, with individual payments ranging from $2,000 to $9,000.
However, the testimony from Gerron Hall, a former area maintenance manager for HISD, contradicted the government’s most important piece of evidence supporting their contention that former HISD Chief Operating Officer Brian Busby and contractor Anthony Hutchison defrauded the school district: a handwritten ledger found in Hutchison’s home.
Witness credibility is crucial in any jury trial, and Hall’s testimony was less than favorable for the government. It also risked undermining the prosecution’s case while aiding the defense in its aim of instilling reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury.
“When a witness can’t recall the specific date that something occurred, it brings into question their recollection of the entire event,” said Charles Flood, a Houston criminal defense attorney who has handled more than two dozen federal jury trials throughout his career.
Prosecutors argue that the four-page ledger, discovered at the back of a calendar book, outlines the individuals Hutchison bribed and the HISD projects linked to those payments. While Hall estimated he received between $40,000 and $50,000, the ledger shows a different figure: According to his plea agreement, he was paid $57,500 in bribes in 2017.
Additionally, the ledger reveals that Hall allegedly received a $20,000 bribe on or around December 12, 2017, related to projects at J.P. Cornelius Elementary School and Las Americas Newcomer School — both awarded to Hutchison, prosecutors stated in the October 2021 plea agreement.
However, Hall could not recall such a payment when questioned on the stand for two hours last month. Another witness, Derrick Sanders, also had difficulties recalling the exact number of times Hutchison had paid him.
Hall was one of five former HISD employees who testified for the government last month in Hutchison and Busby’s lengthy and rare federal bribery trial. Their testimony came more than three years after each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
In their plea agreements, the five individuals admitted to accepting bribes from Hutchison and Busby in exchange for helping Hutchison secure HISD contracts or for refraining from obstructing the process through which he did so. The plea agreements allow for the government to recommend a lighter sentence in exchange for their cooperation.
While on the stand, they all recounted receiving money from Hutchison or Busby on Hutchison’s behalf. However, their recollections varied. Some remembered specific locations and the time of year when they were paid, while others, like Hall, struggled with even the most basic details.
“I told them I wasn’t sure of the dates,” Hall explained, referring to federal authorities. “I’m telling the truth. I’m just off on the dates.”
To jog Hall’s memory, Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Rae Winter presented text messages in court showing that Hutchison had sent his address to Hall on December 12, 2017. Winter followed this with a ledger entry that stated, “15k 12/12 @ 4241,” which she argued indicated that Hall was paid $9,000 at Hutchison’s home that day.
In another exchange via text message, Hall allegedly asked Hutchison, “1230 Lamar or Lanier,” on January 11, 2018. Hutchison simply replied, “Yes.” Winter pointed to a corresponding ledger entry, “10k Lamar 1/11,” suggesting that Hall was paid $10,000 at a location associated with that address on the same day.
When questioned by one of Hutchison’s attorneys about the possibility that he had met Hutchison on January 11, 2018, to settle a sports bet, Hall acknowledged the possibility. “Like I stated, I don’t know how accurate the numbers are,” Hall said.
“You’re saying whatever you need to say to please the government,” Leticia Quinones-Hollins, one of Hutchison’s attorneys, replied, implying that Hall could not be trusted to tell the truth if he had agreed to plead guilty without regard for the accuracy of the details in his plea deal.
Witness’s recall differ from ledger
Like Hall, Derrick Sanders had difficulty recalling the exact number of times Hutchison had paid him, estimating it to be between five and eight.
The former manager of construction services for HISD also struggled to remember the specific locations of the payments, aside from one occasion when Hutchison handed him $10,000 in a Las Vegas hotel room. Sanders testified that most of the exchanges took place in restaurant parking lots.
The government’s interpretation of the ledger indicated that Sanders received $10,000 from Hutchison on October 24, 2017, at Gabby’s BBQ on Shepherd Drive, in connection with a job at Codwell Elementary School. However, Sanders could not recall receiving any payment at Gabby’s.
While Sanders estimated that he had accumulated between $60,000 and $70,000, his estimate contradicted the ledger, which, according to his plea agreement, shows that Sanders was paid $92,000 in 2017 alone.
Rusty Hardin, who also represents Hutchison, pressed Sanders: “Isn’t it true that, deep down, you have no idea whether this plea agreement is true?” To this, Sanders replied, “I don’t know.”
Alfred Hoskins, a former HISD manager of facilities, maintenance, and operations, was more confident in recalling the locations where he received payments, including Hutchison’s home, a shopping center, a park near Hutchison’s house, and Browning Elementary. However, he struggled to remember the exact amounts, estimating they ranged from $2,500 to $10,000.
Both Hoskins and Sanders testified that when Hutchison handed them cash, he typically thanked them and said the money was for a particular school where his companies had worked.
But when questioned by Hardin, Hoskins admitted that during an April 2021 interview with federal authorities, he had not mentioned that Hutchison specified the payments were for specific schools.
Hoskins later explained, in a thick Mississippi accent, that he became confused after the agents left his home and reflected on what he had not shared with them. Hardin still suggested that he could not be trusted to tell the truth if he had initially told authorities one thing and later said something else.
Hoskins also acknowledged that he was confused about whether the payments could be considered bribes during his April 2021 interview with federal authorities.
He testified that the cash began to flow soon after he agreed to Busby’s request to instruct his subordinates, including Hall, to score Just Construction, one of Hutchison’s companies, favorably on a 2017 contract, which allowed the company to become an annual vendor for HISD. An annual vendor is a pre-approved contractor trusted to handle emergency, no-bid work for the district.
Certainly, Hoskins, Sanders, and Hall were asked to recall events from eight or nine years ago. However, Hardin and his co-counsel, Quinones-Hollins, have expressed disbelief that anyone could forget the precise details of when and where they were allegedly bribed.
In response to the government’s case, Hardin and Quinones-Hollins have presented two defenses: first, that Hutchison had a gambling addiction and may have used the ledger to track his winnings and losses; and second, that the cash given to the five former HISD employees was not intended as bribes but as a gesture of appreciation for the work his companies received.
Flood, the Houston criminal defense attorney, said that defense attorneys are not required to provide an alternative explanation for alleged criminal activity. They only need to raise the possibility that one exists. Ultimately, the burden of proof lies with the prosecution, which must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
“That is why the defense frequently rests solely on poking holes in the government’s case,” Flood said.
Hardin and Dick DeGuerin, Busby’s attorney, have indicated they plan to call their own witnesses once the prosecution rests. These witnesses are expected to include Busby and his daughter.
Meanwhile, the other two former HISD employees were much more specific about the timing and locations of the payments they received from Hutchison or Busby.
‘Here’s your money’
In 2016, during her second term as District 2 trustee, Rhonda Skillern-Jones had leftover funds from the $1.89 billion bond issue approved in 2012. Some principals Skillern-Jones spoke to requested new books, while others sought repairs for school buildings’ windows.
Skillern-Jones said she approached Busby, who was then the facilities and maintenance operations manager, to ask about the best way to address those needs. According to Skillern-Jones, Busby assured her he would take care of it and provided periodic updates on the work.
Some time later, Skillern-Jones recalled Busby telling her during a meeting at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center that he had something for her. Though unsure of his meaning at the time, she said she put the pieces together when Busby later called to arrange a meeting.
Skillern-Jones testified that she suggested a Walmart parking lot near her home, and when she parked, Busby got into her car and handed her $5,000 in cash.
Though she said she was shocked and aware that accepting the money was wrong, Skiller-Jones testified she did so because it seemed “very easy” and was tempting. However, she could not recall the exact month in 2016 when the exchange took place.
The second payment occurred in late 2017, when another round of leftover bond money needed to be spent or risk being transferred into the district’s general fund. Skillern-Jones, who said she went to strip clubs with Busby and Hutchison a couple of times, again surveyed principals to determine their needs. Pleasantville Elementary School requested landscaping work and a garden, while Holland Middle School sought renovations for their garden and the installation of a hydroponic pond.
After an unsuccessful attempt to secure additional funds from another board member, Skillern-Jones said she spoke with Busby, who allegedly told her, “Hutch could do these for us.” According to Skillern-Jones, Busby also added, “We could get something in return.” Skillern-Jones interpreted this to mean that she would be compensated for helping Hutchison’s companies secure the contracts.
At a trustee board meeting in August 2017, Skillern-Jones requested the allocation of $231,645 for landscaping projects at the schools. She voted in favor of the agenda item, which was approved by the board.
Skillern-Jones recalled that Busby told her she could receive the money after Southwest Wholesale was paid for the hydroponic pond. “I can get your money, but Hutch has to be paid first,” Skillern-Jones remembered him saying. A couple of months later, Busby called, and they arranged to meet in the same Walmart parking lot. When Busby got into her car, he handed her a black satin pouch containing $12,000, saying, “Here’s your money.”
Once again, Skillern-Jones acknowledged that accepting the money was wrong, but explained that her mother was battling pancreatic cancer, and she was also covering her mother’s car insurance expenses at the time.
Although Skillern-Jones recalled receiving only $17,000, the ledger indicates she received $20,000, according to her plea agreement. Prosecutors also assert that the ledger shows she received a payment at Truluck’s, though Skillern-Jones could not remember ever meeting anyone at the Galleria seafood restaurant.
Aside from capital letters and the initials “BB,” which prosecutors argue refer to Busby, the only names that appear in the ledger are “Rhonda” and “Derrick,” which prosecutors claim refer to Derrick Sanders.
Above “Rhonda” are the letters “BB,” which prosecutors argue refer to Busby.
Skillern, who served as school board president in 2015 and 2018, resigned from both her position on the board and her role as community liaison for Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis after her guilty plea became public.
Safest place for cash?
Luis Tovar, also a former maintenance area manager, had the clearest recollection among the five ex-employees, second only to Skillern-Jones. Though he couldn’t recall the exact dates he was paid, he remembered the locations and amounts.
Tovar testified that, in August 2017, Hutchison called and instructed him to meet in the parking lot outside the HISD facilities and maintenance office on McCarty Street. When Tovar arrived, he got into Hutchison’s white Chevy Silverado and was handed $10,000 in hundreds.
Tovar said he initially pushed the money away, but Hutchison reassured him, saying, “It’s fine, I help those who help me out.”
The payment came shortly after Tovar, following instructions from Hoskins, had given Hutchison’s company, Just Construction, a favorable score on the 2017 contract for minor maintenance and repair jobs. Tovar ultimately accepted the money, placing it inside the sock of his boot before leaving Hutchison’s car.
Tovar testified that he received cash from Hutchison on four other occasions: $10,000 outside McReynolds Middle School in 2018, $7,000 outside Hilliard Elementary School later that same year, $3,000 in the parking lot of Marshall Middle Academy of Fine Arts, also in 2018, and $10,000 in the parking lot of the former High School for Visual and Performing Arts (now the Arabic Immersion Magnet School).
Tovar said neither he nor Hutchison discussed the purpose of the money each time, nor did Tovar inquire about it. Defense attorneys have seized on this, arguing that because Hutchison never made any requests in return, there was no explicit agreement for Tovar to provide anything in exchange, meaning the payments were not bribes.
The trial is now entering its third week of testimony. Winter and her co-counsel, Robert Searls Johnson, have called 22 witnesses so far, including FBI agents, former Southwest Wholesale employees, subcontractors, HISD officials, and interior designers.
After the jury left the courtroom for lunch on Monday morning, the prosecutors informed U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen that they expected to call eight more witnesses before resting their case and handing it over to the defense.
In response, Hanen said they needed to conclude their case soon, emphasizing that the jurors had been told the trial would last three weeks and that a mistrial could be declared if jurors were unavailable for a fourth week.
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