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"Cold Cash" Congressman Pleads Not Guilty By Matthew Barakat Jefferson, D-La., said he understood the charges during the federal court hearing. He was released on $100,000 unsecured bond. "I am absolutely innocent of the charges that have been leveled against me," Jefferson said afterward. "I'm going to fight my heart out to clear my name." As conditions for his release, U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III denied the congressman access to shotguns and rifles in his Louisiana home. Jefferson said the guns were used for hunting. Ellis also ordered Jefferson to surrender his passport. Jefferson, 60, will be allowed to travel in the Washington area and in Louisiana, but he will need approval for any other domestic or international travel, the judge said. A 94-page indictment, handed down Monday, details 11 separate bribery schemes and 16 criminal counts, including racketeering, soliciting bribes, wire fraud, money laundering and obstruction of justice. If convicted, Jefferson faces a possible maximum sentence of 235 years. His trial is scheduled for January. Robert Trout, Jefferson's lawyer, said the complexity of the case required Jefferson to waive his right to a speedy trial. "This has been investigated for two years," Trout said. 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 compiled evidence filling eight file cabinets and had extensive tape recordings. The prosecution's case could take up to a month to present, he said. Jefferson was re-elected last year. After his indictment, he resigned from the House Small Business Committee while maintaining his innocence. On Thursday, a federal judge froze Jefferson's assets and the House ethics committee voted to expand its own investigation of Jefferson to include any subject in the 16-count corruption indictment. Jefferson is the first U.S. official to face charges under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which prohibits corporate bribery overseas.
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A Feast
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