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By Jay Conley
Burrow supporters staged a walkathon, sent letters to potential donors, and bought large display ads in newspapers to help Burrow fight charges that he committed fraud when raising funds to build the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford. People paid $100 a head to attend a cabaret fund-raiser at the Patrick Henry Hotel. All told, the effort raised nearly $150,000 toward Burrow's defense, said Bob Archer, a Salem beverage distributor in charge of the Friends of Richard Burrow Legal Defense Fund. Archer and others are planning another fund-raising campaign in the wake of Burrow's re-indictment Tuesday on fraud and perjury charges. Archer vows it will be more aggressive than the last one. The fund-raising kicked off Wednesday, when veterans in Roanoke Post 64 of the 29th Division Association quickly and unanimously voted to donate $2,000 to Burrow's legal defense fund. "We're going to get geared up as quickly as we can," Archer said Friday. "The needs are going to be much greater than $150,000." In Burrow's first trial, in December 2002, he faced four charges related to his actions as president of the National D-Day Memorial Foundation: mail fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud and loan application fraud. That trial ended when a jury deadlocked 7-5 in favor of his acquittal. Since then, the U.S. Attorney's Office has failed to win a conviction in another high-profile case against Dr. Cecil Knox, a Roanoke pain specialist accused of overmedicating his patients with addictive painkillers. Another case against Darrell David Rice, accused of the brutal 1996 slayings of two female hikers in Shenandoah National Park, has been postponed in the wake of forensic evidence that suggests Rice may not be their killer. "[U.S. Attorney John] Brownlee cannot afford to lose this case and he has to, in any measure, come up with a conviction," Archer said. "I personally feel strongly that this case is no longer about justice and fairness and what is best for this community." In the re-indictment, federal prosecutors have added six new fraud charges to the list, plus two new perjury charges that allege Burrow lied while testifying in his own defense. Because of the new charges, Burrow's defense is going to cost him a lot more, Archer said. The last time around, Burrow defenders networked with some of Roanoke's most prominent and wealthy residents. Among the people who contributed money was former Dominion Bank Chairman Warner Dalhouse, who testified for Burrow during his week long trial in U.S. District Court in Lynchburg. Others, such as Burrow friends Barbara and David Peery of Roanoke, staged a two-mile walkathon in the Raleigh Court area that about 20 people participated in. It raised $3,000. The renewed campaign is likely to try to take the fund-raising to an even more grass-roots level, Archer said. Besides newspapers ads and formal fund-raising events, he's considering a telephone campaign to solicit funds. "We're just going to be more public about it," he said. Archer said he believes enough people are outraged that Burrow is being tried a second time that they will donate to his legal defense fund. "If people are upset, they will contribute," he said. Frances Little West, a friend of the Burrows who has contributed to the legal defense fund in the past, pledged her support again. "Whatever they need us to do, we're there for them," West said. Michelle Bennett, another family friend who has contributed to the defense fund, also reiterated her support. "All we can say is, we're not letting go of Richard," Bennett said. "He would be a very bad loss." Staff writer Jen McCaffery contributed to this story.
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