The nature of a community outreach job given to former state Sen. Wayne Bryant by UMDNJ meant he wasn’t productive sitting at a desk.
That’s what George Hampton, its former vice president of urban and community development, said while testifying today at Bryant’s federal corruption trial.
Hampton said other staff in similar posts would spend only three or four hours in the office. To keep up with news in their host communities, he said outreach officials were required to read newspapers daily and spent much of their time on the telephone.
The testimony was meant to counter federal prosecutors’ contention that Bryant was given a “low show” job to help him pad his state pension in exchange for using his influence as a legislative leader to channel more state money to UMDNJ’s School of Osteopathic Medicine in Stratford.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)