Corruption charges brought against Berlusconi

Back when he was premier of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi had his packed parliament vote to shield him from all corruption charges brought against him. Now, he is no longer premier, and perhaps these charges will stick. Who knows?

An Italian judge has ordered that Silvio Berlusconi, the former prime minister, stand trial on corruption charges along with British lawyer David Mills.

Milan magistrates had accused Berlusconi of paying Mills, the estranged husband of Tessa Jowell, the British culture secretary, a $600,000 kickback for not revealing details of Berlusconi's media empire when he testified in two court cases.

Berlusconi's lawyer confirmed that judge Fabio Paparella had ordered both Berlusconi and Mills to stand trial after preliminary hearings that started earlier this year. With the judge's order the two men were officially charged with corruption.

There are any number of people around the world who I would like to see brought to justice. Certainly George Bush and Dick Cheney are at the top of the list, but Silvio Berlusconi was pretty far up. I certainly hope justice is served here, whatever the facts prove, but I know which side I'm rooting for.