Attorney General drops charges against Lowell Barron

Lowell Baarron

The prosecution of former state Sen. Lowell Barron is over.  The Alabama Attorney General's office, which brought a six-count indictment against Barron in 2013, filed a motion Monday in DeKalb County Circuit Court to dismiss the charges.  Trial judge Randall Cole hasn't ruled on the motion filed late Monday afternoon yet but his approval is considered a formality.  Dropping the charges was not unexpected after the Alabama Supreme Court on Friday denied an appeal by the Attorney Generals office, upholding rulings  The state also filed to have the charges dropped against Rhonda Jill Johnson, Barron's longtime campaign worker who was indicted on identical charges as the former senator.  In a statement released following the Supreme Court's ruling on Friday, Barron called on Attorney General Luther Strange to drop the charges.

by two lower courts on evidence that could be admitted at trial. Based on court documents filed by prosecutors, that decision left the state without a case against Barron.

Strange's decision not to further pursue the case brings an end to a high-profile prosecution and a vehement defense by Barron.