The trial of former FirstEnergy executives charged in a sweeping Ohio bribery scandal began Tuesday in Akron with competing accounts of what a major 2019 payment was for, and whether communications tied to that payout reflect improper influence or legitimate business arrangements.
Prosecutors said the case centers on a $4.3 million payment that Ohio-based FirstEnergy made to veteran lawyer and lobbyist Sam Randazzo in 2019 shortly before Randazzo was appointed to lead the state utility regulator. Prosecutors allege that then-FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones and then-FirstEnergy Services senior vice president Michael Dowling helped orchestrate the payout and that it was meant to be repaid later through regulatory and legislative favors, according to the theory presented at trial. Both Jones and Dowling pleaded not guilty to felony corruption charges.
In opening statements, Special Assistant Attorney General Matthew Meyer told jurors that they need not be overwhelmed by the complexities of utility regulation they will see over what prosecutors and the judge expect to be an approximately eight-week trial. Meyer characterized the defendants’ role as intentional and direct, telling jurors that Jones and Dowling “went to Mr. Randazzo repeatedly, secretly and they rigged the game,” adding that “That’s what this is about, and that’s why it’s simple. This game got rigged and the game is not boring.”
Defense attorney Steve Grimes urged jurors to focus on what he said were critical specifics. Grimes predicted prosecutors would try to gloss over or omit complexities behind Jones’ and Dowling’s actions in order to present a “good story,” and told jurors that “details matter.” He said that while shortcuts might work in everyday life, “that’s not how it works in a court of law,” and added that “You can’t skip the details. You can’t miss critical facts when somebody’s liberty is at stake. Not in here.”
Randazzo is not alive to testify. The defense described the late attorney as having borne sole responsibility for the misuse of FirstEnergy money, and the prosecution and defense both pointed to the long-running criminal dispute after Randazzo died by suicide in 2024 following not guilty pleas to dozens of state and federal charges. The timing of Randazzo’s death removed a central figure from the courtroom record, shifting focus to documentary evidence and testimony from other witnesses.
The trial is part of a broader bribery prosecution that followed the 2020 arrests of then-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four associates. Federal prosecutors alleged that Householder and others carried out a bribery plot funded by FirstEnergy that helped Householder win the speakership, elect allies, pass a $1 billion nuclear plant bailout, and then foil efforts to repeal that legislation, known as House Bill 6. FirstEnergy admitted in 2021 to using “dark money” groups to fund the plot, and a jury convicted Householder of racketeering in 2023; he is serving a 20-year federal prison sentence while fighting the conviction in the U.S. Supreme Court.
As the case got underway, Jones and Dowling notified Summit County Common Pleas Judge Susan Baker Ross that they may call 58 potential witnesses. The defense said Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, who appointed Randazzo to the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, is among those they could call, as is Jon Husted, DeWine’s former lieutenant governor who DeWine appointed a U.S. senator last year. The record presented at trial also noted that neither DeWine nor Husted has been accused of wrongdoing in the case.
Grimes said Jones had ready access to Husted and that Husted could speak to FirstEnergy’s interest in seeing a different person than Randazzo tapped as PUCO chair. Prosecutors’ filings, as described in the case record, also include details of social meetings in late 2018 and messages around that period, including court filings showing Jones, Dowling and Josh Rubin dining together on Dec. 18, 2018, at the Athletic Club of Columbus. Earlier that day, Rubin—described in the complaint as a FirstEnergy lobbyist and adviser to the 2018 DeWine-Husted campaign—provided advice to the executives on how to lobby DeWine in favor of the company’s preferences for the PUCO chair, prosecutors say.
According to the complaint text described in the trial coverage, Rubin cautioned the executives not to mention to DeWine that they would be meeting Randazzo at his residence after the dinner. Later in the day, Randazzo texted Dowling with figures for totals for 2019 through 2024, including “Total 4,333,333,” and Dowling replied, “Got it, Sam,” adding “Good seeing you as well. Thanks for the hospitality. Cool condo.” The following day, Jones also texted Randazzo, writing: “We’re going to get this handled this year, paid in full, no discount,” and warning, “Don’t forget about us or Hurricane Chuck may show up on your doorstep! Of course, no guarantee he won’t show up sometime anyway.” Randazzo replied, “Made me laugh — you guys are welcome anytime and anywhere I can open the door. Let me know how you want me to structure the invoices. Thanks.”
Jones’ defense attorney, Carole Rendon, said those messages support a different interpretation, characterizing the payout as aboveboard and handled through normal corporate channels. Rendon told jurors there was “nothing secret or hidden about this payment,” and said additional communications from what she described as the critical 17-hour period show that the $4.3 million was a settlement agreement intended for Randazzo’s clients. She also said DeWine has stated that Randazzo did not disclose, and that the governor did not know about, the consulting arrangement with FirstEnergy until it surfaced in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing.