Is FirstEnergy a victim? Former executives say the company shouldn't be labeled one

Akron-based FirstEnergy and its allies bankrolled one of Ohio's largest corruption scandals . But state prosecutors now say the company should be labeled a victim of its former leaders' actions.

Two former executives accused of bribing a top utility regulator aren't buying it.

"FirstEnergy does not qualify as a victim under this constitutional standard for the fundamental reason that FirstEnergy is an admitted (and accused) co-conspirator and participant in the alleged crime," wrote attorneys for former FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones and former Senior Vice President of External Affairs Michael Dowling.

FirstEnergy, its subsidiaries and its allies paid more than $60 million to help former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder win control of the Ohio House of Representatives, pass a $1 billion bailout for two nuclear plants and defend that law against a ballot initiative to block it.

Jones and Dowling are accused of bribing former Public Utilities Commission of Ohio Chairman Sam Randazzo with a $4.3 million payment to work on FirstEnergy's behalf within Gov. Mike DeWine's administration. Both men have pleaded not guilty . Randazzo, who was also charged, died last month .

State prosecutors, including Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's office, accused Jones and Dowling of stealing from FirstEnergy when they executed that $4.3 million contract with Randazzo. Using that premise, FirstEnergy was a victim of theft.

But FirstEnergy has already admitted it made that payment − and intended it to be a bribe, the ex-executives' attorneys wrote.

Attorneys for the former executives argue that if FirstEnergy is designated a "victim," the company would unfairly benefit from rules meant to protect crime victims called Marsy's Law. That designation could prevent Jones and Dowling from getting records or interviews from FirstEnergy or its employees.

"The state should not be permitted to gain unfair tactical advantages in a criminal prosecution by improperly designating FirstEnergy as a “victim,” especially when that designation contradicts FirstEnergy’s own admissions and the position the State has taken consistently and stridently in this case and elsewhere," wrote attorneys Carole S. Rendon, who is representing Jones, and John F. McCaffrey, who is representing Dowling.

Another investigation into FirstEnergy?

Meanwhile, state prosecutors are investigating FirstEnergy, the former executives' attorneys wrote. FirstEnergy could be charged criminally or could enter into a deferred prosecution agreement, which would allow the company to avoid prosecution in exchange for admitting wrongdoing and paying a penalty. State prosecutors also offered immunity to several former executives, according to the filing.

A FirstEnergy spokeswoman said state investigators informed FirstEnergy that the former executives' attorneys were wrong in their assertion that FirstEnergy is a target of an investigation or could be charged criminally. Yost's office said they would respond in court.

FirstEnergy entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors in 2021, admitted it bribed Randazzo and Householder and paid a $230 million fine.

More: FirstEnergy CEO says company may have to put 'money on the table' to move past scandal

Current FirstEnergy CEO Brian X. Tierney alluded to the possible resolution of the state criminal investigation in a recent earnings call, saying the company “may have to put a little bit of money on the table."

FirstEnergy is not a victim, former executives say by jbalmert on Scribd

Akron Beacon Journal reporter Patrick Williams contributed to this article.

Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Is FirstEnergy a victim? Former executives say the company shouldn't be labeled one