Whitewater Figure Gets New Liver

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Former Arkansas Gov. Jim Guy Tucker, who was convicted of fraud and conspiracy in a Whitewater-related trial, received a new liver Wednesday, the Mayo Clinic said.

“Everything apparently has gone off as expected and he is in stable condition,” hospital spokeswoman Priscilla Russell said after the four-hour operation.

Tucker, 53, had chronic liver disease and had been on a transplant waiting list for four months, Russell said.

She said the former governor is expected to be in the hospital for six to 10 days. The hospital didn’t release information about the liver donor, but said the organ became available Wednesday, prompting the Christmas Day surgery.

Tucker was spared a prison term because of his health but sentenced to four years’ probation, and resigned from office on July 15. A judge released him from 18 months of home detention so he could move to Rochester to await the transplant.