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Jury Selection Begins In Bloomberg Campaign Funds Theft Trial

NEW YORK (AP / WCBS 880) - Jury selection got under way in the trial of a political consultant charged with stealing more than $1 million from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

WCBS 880's Irene Cornell: This Trial Could Be Most Embarrassing For The Mayor

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Jury selection began Monday in John Haggerty's trial. Prosecutors say he got the mayor to give the state Independence Party $1.2 million for a party-wide poll watching initiative in 2009. Bloomberg was then running for re-election. The unaffiliated mayor was the Independence Party's top candidate.

Prosecutors say Haggerty pocketed most of the money rather than using it as planned. Haggerty says he did the work he was paid for.

Bloomberg may be the trial's star witness.

A judge has ordered prosecutors and defense lawyers not to talk about the case outside court.

(TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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