Friend tapped daughter's trust fund to give Fumo cash

"He gave me the money to settle the divorce," Fumo testified. "He saw me agonizing through it and didn't want me to go through it."

The trial was the first time the public learned of the $1 million gift, or of the present of the $500,000 boat.

Unlike the rules for Congress, Pennsylvania law exempts public officials from disclosing gifts from friends.

Though Marcus is not known to have pursued any legislative agenda in Harrisburg, he did explore briefly taking part in a casino ownership group, sources say, but nothing ever came of it.

As Fumo returned to the dating scene, Marcus and he had a disagreement. Marcus said flatly that he disapproved of the senator's girlfriend, according to an e-mail introduced as evidence.

"I really don't like her and REALLY don't trust her," Marcus wrote Fumo in 2004.

In fact, Marcus told his friend, "I hope she doesn't ride in the plane."

For reasons that are unclear, some say, the two friends had a falling out in Marcus' final months. But, there is no doubt about their bond at its peak.

According to exhibits at the trial, Fumo signed messages to Marcus, "Love, Vince."

As for Marcus, the trial showed, he ended one e-mail to Fumo, "ILY - Steve."

The Inquirer's live blog from the Fumo trial is at

To read more about the former state senator, go to

Contact staff writer Craig R. McCoy at 215-8454-4821 or cmccoy@phillynews.com.

Inquirer staff writer John Sullivan contributed to this article.