KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The government paid nearly $2,500 for Sarah Palin’s husband to come to the trial of a Tennessee college student who hacked into her e-mail — even though Todd Palin never testified, court records show.
In all, the government paid more than $29,000 to fly members of the Palin family and other witnesses to Knoxville, send a prosecutor to Alaska for research and pay other travel expenses, according to Department of Justice records obtained by The Associated Press through a Freedom of Information Act request.
The thousands of dollars spent by prosecutors helped them win a conviction against David Kernell, who finishes his 10-month sentence today. Prosecutors have said Kernell’s punishment for the hacking during Palin’s failed 2008 vice presidential bid should deter any hackers who considered targeting candidates in next fall’s presidential election.
The former Alaska governor, her daughter Bristol and an aide were among those called to the stand, but the chief prosecutor said he decided Todd Palin’s testimony wasn’t needed.
