Teamsters Official Accused of Violating Campaign Laws Retires

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A Teamsters union leader accused of violating campaign-finance laws during the 1995 governor's campaign has retired but says his departure has nothing to do with his legal problems.

on Fields Sr. said Tuesday he had long planned to retire as president of Teamsters Local 89 at the end of last year.

Mr. Fields, 64, of Shelbyville, said he was following the example of his two predecessors, who retired early to give their No. 2 men a chance to serve a year as president before seeking election to the office.

r. Fields, who was Local 89 president for eight years, said he had retired effective Dec. 31 and that Local 89's executive board appointed the local's secretary-treasurer, Robert Winstead, as the new president.

n September a special grand jury in Frankfort indicted Mr. Fields, Mr. Winstead and two officials of Gov. Paul Patton's staff for allegedly violating campaign-finance laws during Mr. Patton's 1995 election campaign.

All four have pleaded innocent and asked that the charges be dismissed.

I think they'll throw that thing (indictment) out in Frankfort. Hopefully they will," Mr. Fields said. "My decision has nothing to do with anything except I got my time in and I wanted to

ive (Winstead) a year to get ready for election."