LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Louisville Metro Councilman Anthony Piagentini repeatedly uttered the same two words in council court on Monday: "I confirm."
The embattled Republican testified during day five of his own removal trial, one of the final witnesses called by the Charging Committee's lawyer Kent Wicker.
Wicker asked Piagentini pointed questions, including whether the councilman improperly accepted employment from the Louisville Healthcare CEO Council (CEOc)-- and whether his objectivity as a councilmember was impaired because of a job opportunity.
"Did you improperly solicit or accept a promise of employment or another thing of value? Did you engage in misconduct by false testimony in connection with the Ethics Commission proceedings?"
Piagentini's attorney answered each time by citing the 'evolving claims' made against his client, saying he's continuing to advise he not answer questions pursuant to the 5th Amendment.
After each question, Piagentini subsequently confirmed his attorney's directive.
The questioning went back and forth for nearly 10 minutes.
In October, the Louisville Ethics Commission found Piagentini guilty of violating the city's ethics code, ruling he improperly leveraged his Council position to secure a six-figure consulting job with the CEOc -- a company that works to develop and modernize the workforce within the healthcare industry.
Piagentini co-sponsored an ordinance that secured the company $40 million in American Rescue Plan funding, only to later recuse himself from the final vote and eventually take a job with that same company.
In November, Piagentini appealed that ruling, calling the findings "tainted by bias."
On Monday, attorneys also finished up testimony from Jim Griffin, who investigated on behalf of the Ethics Commission.
Griffin revealed he's referred the investigation to the FBI, but he didn't elaborate on what that could mean moving forward.
In the afternoon, Piagentini's attorneys began their case, calling Council President Markus Winkler and Councilwoman Cindi Fowler -- also the Charging Committee Chair -- to the stand, where tempers at one point flared.
J. Brooken Smith asked Fowler whether she stated that she believed Piagentini had violated the code of ethics during her testimony in the August ethics trial, to which she responded, "I answered that once, yes that's correct."
The removal trial will go through Wednesday, and extend to an extra day on Friday if needed. We're told the earliest deliberations could start would be later next week, meaning it could still be several days before the city sees a verdict.
To remove Piagentini from his seat, 18 of 26 councilmembers would need to vote in favor.
►Contact reporter Isaiah Kim-Martinez at IKimMartin@whas11.com or on Facebook or Twitter
►Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users.
Have a news tip? Email assign@whas11.com, or visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.