Ex-state Sen. Wilkerson will get free lawyer, judge rules

A federal magistrate just approved former Massachusetts Senator Dianne Wilkerson's request for a court-appointed attorney. U.S. Magistrate Timothy Hillman in Boston ruled she can keep attorney Max Stern as counsel.

"I find from the financial statements filed by Ms. Wilkerson that she is indigent and cannot afford to retain private counsel," Hillman said in an order made public this afternoon.

Federal prosecutors claim Wilkerson, who was forced to resign last week after her indictment on charges she extorted a man seeking a liquor license in Boston, took more than $23,000 in bribes from an informant. The case against her includes videotape of the long-time senator apparently stuffing the cash into her bra inside a Beacon Hill restaurant.

It remains a mystery just how broke Wilkerson is. The judge sealed the financial records she submitted to get free counsel.