Indicted La. Rep Jefferson Loses to GOP Newbie

Feds say Jefferson took bribes, had $90K stashed in his freezer

(NEWSER) - Jury selection began today in the trial of former Louisiana Rep. William Jefferson, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. The Democrat is charged with taking bribes and using his office to set up business deals in Africa. “It is good to have my family with me,” he said as he arrived at the courthouse in Virginia. In 2005, federal investigators traced $90,000 from an informant to Jefferson’s freezer. More»

La. Congressman faces 16-count federal indictment, 235 years

(NEWSER) - Federal officials indicted Rep. William Jefferson today, charging him with bribery, racketeering, money-laundering, and other misdeeds that could carry a sentence of up to 235 years. The Louisiana Democrat, the target of a lengthy investigation into business deals in Africa, has maintained his innocence, even after investigators found $90,000 in cash in his freezer in 2005. More»

(AP) - A federal jury convicted a former Louisiana congressman today of taking bribes on 11 of 16 counts in a case in which agents found $90,000 in his freezer. Former Rep. William Jefferson, a Democrat who had represented parts of New Orleans, was accused of accepting more than $400,000 in bribes and seeking millions more in exchange for brokering business deals in Africa. He was convicted of charges including bribery, racketeering, and money laundering. More»

My client was drunk, stupid, sleazy—oh, and black, argues Jefferson's lawyer

(NEWSER) - What do you say when you’re defending William Jefferson, on trial for allegedly taking $100,000 in bribe money and hiding it in his freezer? Pretty much whatever the heck you can think of, writes Dana Milbank of the Washington Post. The lawyer for the then-Congressman opened his defense yesterday with a crack about “frozen assets” before arguing that his client was sleazy and stupid, but not technically guilty. More»

Separation of powers violated, appeals ruled

(NEWSER) - The Supreme Court declined today to hear an appeal of a ruling that the FBI violated separation-of-powers law in a 2006 raid on the office of Rep. William Jefferson, the New York Times reports. Though the raid itself was not unconstitutional, an appeals court found, the FBI went too far in allowing agents to look through the Louisiana Democrat's documents. More»