Judge won't drop charges against Rep. William Jefferson

It seems that William "Dollar Bill" Jefferson will have to face the music after all since the judge won't drop the charges:

Facing 16 bribery-related charges stemming from business deals in West Africa, Jefferson sought to unravel the government's case by claiming that some of the testimony provided to the grand jury by six current or former staffers violated the U.S. Constitution.

Come on Jefferson: It is time you pay the piper.

Jefferson's defense team uses stall tactics

First Congressman William Jefferson's defense team wanted his trial moved out of Virginia because they felt that the jury pool would not consists of blacks, thereby hindering Jefferson's chances of a fair trial. Now they are trying to block one of the government's witnesses from testifying.

The defense team filed papers in federal court Tuesday seeking to keep Abner Mikva off the witness stand, saying his service as an appellate court judge would unduly influence the jury.

"The government refers to him as " 'Judge Mikva' no less than six times," attorney Robert Trout protested in legal papers referring to the Department of Justice's witness list. "This unnecessary emphasis reveals the government's true intentions in proffering the witness and his testimony should be excluded."

Wow, the government refers to the witness as "Judge". Oh, oh , oh, he should be disqualified. Right. A bribe is a bribe. We all know what a business deal consist of. Come on Jefferson. Play another card.

Congressman William Jefferson Accused of Additional Bribery Schemes

The Justice Department said Friday that it intends to present evidence of two additional bribery schemes, including one involving efforts to win a contract with NASA, as part of its corruption case against Rep. William Jefferson, D-New Orleans.

In both cases, prosecutors said, Jefferson sought a payoff for relatives in exchange for his help in setting up business deals.

The government listed 11 schemes in its June 4 indictment, which accused the nine-term congressman of bribery, racketeering and violation of the corrupt foreign practices act. The Justice Department is not looking to add any charges to the indictment, but said it plans to use the two new alleged schemes as evidence at the trial, which is scheduled to begin Jan. 16.

Well, well well: Jefferson used his position to advance the interest of his family members. This is just another example of Family Corruption In The Big Easy. Too bad the feds haven't fully addressed the family corruption that centered around the City Hall energy savings contract with Johnson Control. -- Just follow the family trail:

Graft In US Army Contracts

"On the fourth Sunday in July, John Lee Cockerham was here in his hometown for the baptism of his twin sons.


People in this northwest corner of Louisiana think of him as an unlikely success story, a man who started with nothing to become a major in the Army. He and his 17 siblings grew up without electricity and running water. His parents earned barely enough to keep everyone fed.

Yet even after he made it out of Castor, his ties to these backwoods remained strong. The congregation at New Friendship Baptist Church celebrated his last promotion with a parade. At his sons’ baptism, he told fellow worshipers that he hoped to instill in his children the values he had wrested from hardship.

Less than 24 hours later Major Cockerham was behind bars, accused of orchestrating the largest single bribery scheme against the military since the start of the Iraq war. According to the authorities, the 41-year-old officer, with his wife and a sister, used an elaborate network of offshore bank accounts and safe deposit boxes to hide nearly $10 million in bribes from companies seeking military contracts."
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