Testimony ends in Stevens trial

WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 (UPI) -- The judge in the trial of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, sent the jury home for the day Monday after the senator finished his testimony.

Monday was the senator's third day in court of defending himself against charges he didn't reveal more than $250,000 in gifts and home renovations on Senate disclosure forms.

Defense and prosecutors said they had no more witnesses after Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the Senate, and District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan scheduled closing arguments for Tuesday, Roll Call reported.

Federal prosecutor Brenda Morris sought to shake Stevens's testimony that he was unaware of all the costs associated with the renovation of his home near Anchorage, Alaska, The Hill reported. Stevens's defense team says the 84-year-old Republican believed all of the bills related to the renovation had been paid and that his wife, Catherine, took the lead in the project.

Stevens sought a speedy trial after his indictment this summer, saying he wanted the trial to be decided before the general election Nov. 4. He is seeking his seventh full term.