NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A federal judge ordered a year-long pause of the case against Tennessee State Representative Glen Casada and his former aide Cade Cothren after they requested a six-month delay for their initial trial date.
According to an order from Judge Eli Richardson, the new trial will occur on Oct. 3, 2023, giving Casada and Cothren’s legal team time to prepare for the trial. Judge Richardson added that if they cannot appear by this deadline, they will have waived any right to file pretrial motions.
Casada and Cothren both face multiple charges, including theft from federal funds, bribery, and kickbacks involving programs receiving federal funds, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit fraud.
The 20-count indictment was unsealed on Tuesday morning and charges both Casada and Cothren with using fictitious names to execute fraud and eight counts of money laundering.
The indictment states that Casada and Cothren, in concert with another individual, began a fraudulent scheme to obtain state approval of Phoenix Solutions as the official vendor to provide constituent mail services to members of the Tennessee General Assembly.