Rep. William Jefferson Pleads Not Guilty

Rep. William Jefferson, D-La., pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of racketeering, money-laundering and soliciting more than $500,000 in bribes in connection with years of trying to broker business deals in Africa.

Jefferson said little during the hearing in federal court in Alexandria, but acknowledged that he understood the charges and waived his right to a speedy trial. He was released on $100,000 bond, and a trial date was set for January 16.

A 94-page indictment, handed up Monday, details 11 separate bribery schemes and 16 criminal counts, including racketeering, soliciting bribes, wire fraud, money laundering and obstruction of justice. Jefferson faces a possible maximum sentence of 235 years.

The charges came almost two years after investigators raided Jefferson's home in Washington and found $90,000 in cash stuffed in a box in his freezer.

During Friday's hearing, prosecutor Mark Lytle said the government had eight file cabinets of evidence in the case and extensive tape recordings. He said the government could spend up to a month presenting its case.

U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III has prohibited Jefferson's access to guns kept in his Louisiana home. He has also frozen his bank accounts and other assets.

"I am innocent of these charges and I plan to clear my name," Jefferson said following the hearing.

Standing next to his wife, Andrea, Jefferson spoke of his wife and five daughters, claiming "They are not who the government describes them to be ... bribers, racketeers and conspirators."

"This is not who we are. This is not who I am. This is not what I have done. I am innocent of all the charges and allegations that have been leveled against me. And I and my family with our friends and allies pledge to fight to clear our name and see justice done," he said.

Jefferson said he and his family are at a disadvantage against the Justice Department, which he characterized as not only possessing of unlimited resources but also able to "engineer circumstances, leak information, and even violate the constitution in pursuit of its goals."

He also suggested that the $90,000 cash which was found in the freezer of his Louisiana home belonged to the FBI, as part of their plan to bribe the president of Nigeria.

Earlier this week, the House ordered a quick internal investigation that could oust Jefferson from Congress before his bribery trial.

Jefferson resigned his seat on the Small Business Committee. Democrats already had moved to take that seat from him.

Jefferson admitted no wrongdoing.

Jefferson, who has been under investigation for more than two years, was re-elected last year despite the looming investigation, But the nine-term congressman had few allies among leaders of his own party.

The charges against Jefferson, "if proven true, should lead to the expulsion of the member in question," said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who earlier ousted Jefferson from the Ways and Means Committee, issued a similar statement Monday.

That wasn't enough for Republicans, still smarting from losing control of Congress in the November elections partly over ethics breaches of their own members.

Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio offered a resolution directing the Ethics Committee to report on whether the charges in the indictment merit Jefferson's expulsion. The House passed it, 373-26. Thirteen members voted present.

Expelling a House member before a conviction would be unprecedented, according to the Congressional Research Service. But it was not clear that would happen in Jefferson's case, because the Ethics Committee could refuse to rule on whether the nine-term congressman should be thrown out of the House, according to a Democratic leadership aide.