HILLSBORO, Ohio -- A veteran standup comedian accused of abusing his power as mayor of a small Ohio city has been acquitted of all counts.
A Highland County jury on Wednesday found Hillsboro Mayor Drew Hastings not guilty of a charge of election falsification concerning his residency and of a charge stemming from alleged misuse of city trash bins.
Judge Patricia Ann Cosgrove earlier threw out the two other felony counts he faced.
The Times-Gazette reports a special prosecutor from Ohio's auditor's office told jurors Tuesday that Hastings "thought the laws didn't apply to him."
A defense attorney says Hastings' political enemies were behind an investigation that began soon after the Republican's re-election to a second term last November.
The city of 6,600 people is 60 miles east of Cincinnati.
