Judge decides friend of Obama is ‘hostile witness’

Posted on December 9, 2014

By The Associated Press

SPRINGFIELD – A judge has declared a friend of President Barack Obama a "hostile witness" in a trial over funds allegedly misused at the Illinois Department of Public Health.  

Judge Richard Mills' decision Monday means prosecutors will have more leeway in questioning Dr. Eric Whitaker.  

Whitaker said during a two-hour hearing in Springfield that he was "upset about the process" and being made to look as if he's on trial. But he says he isn't a hostile witness.  

Whitaker was the agency's director from 2003 to 2007. He's a witness in a trial in U.S. District Court involving Leon Dingle Jr., who's accused of diverting more than $3 million in grants for his personal use.  

Whitaker isn't accused of wrongdoing. The U.S. attorney's office says he reneged on an agreement to cooperate.  
 

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