Boogyman
10-13-2006, 10:58
Rep. Ney pleads guilty in lobbying scandal
Could get 27 months to 10 years in prison at January 19th sentencing
Bill Haber / AP file
Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, has become the first member of congress to plead guilty in the Capitol Hill lobbying scandal probe.
Updated: 1 hour ago
WASHINGTON - Rep. Bob Ney pleaded guilty Friday to bribery charges stemming from the Jack Abramoff influence-peddling investigation.
The Ohio Republican was the first member of Congress convicted in the scandal that has tainted the White House as well as Capitol Hill. He faces up to 10 years in prison.
Ney confessed his wrongdoing before U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle in a federal courthouse a few blocks distant from the Capitol, where until recently he wielded a chairman's gavel.
The Ohio Republican did not speak to reporters as he made his way into the courthouse. It was his first public appearance since entering an alcohol treatment program last month.
Inside the courtroom, Huvelle spent nearly a half-hour asking the sandy-haired, red-faced congressman a series of questions about whether he understood the charges and agreed that he had taken money, gifts and favors in return for official actions on behalf of Abramoff and his clients.
At the end she asked him how he pleaded to the conspiracy count, he replied, "I plead guilty your honor."
Huvelle said that while the maximum penalty is 10 years in prison and $500,000 in fines, the government had agreed to recommend a penalty of 27 months in prison.
She added that federal guidelines suggest a fine between $5,000 and $60,000.
Mark Touhey, Ney's lawyer, told the judge the congressman would resign from office before sentencing on Jan. 19. Ney's term in Congress expires before then, though, at noon on Jan 3.
Touhey also asked for Ney to be incarcerated in a facility that has an alcohol treatment program.
Ney is out on bond until his sentencing. He can travel within the United States.
Change of direction
Ney had consistently denied any wrongdoing in the investigation, an insistence that he maintained even after his former chief of staff pleaded guilty in May. The aide, Neil Volz, confessed to conspiring to corrupt the congressman and others with trips and other aid. Volz became a business partner of Abramoff after leaving the congressional payroll.
Ney had a unique power perch in the House when the year dawned, as chairman of the committee with jurisdiction over the internal workings of the 435-member House. Speaker Dennis Hastert pressured Ney into surrendering his committee chairmanship earlier this year as concern rippled through the GOP ranks about the Abramoff scandal.
Still, as recently as early summer, Ney said he intended to seek re-election in the sprawling, rural district in eastern Ohio he has represented since 1994. He changed his mind at the prodding of party leaders who feared the loss of his seat in November if he remained on the ballot.
Abramoff convenient incarceration
Just after the mid-term elections, on Nov. 15, disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff will report to federal prison on his own guilty pleas relating to the Florida based SunCruz casino scandal.
Prosecutors and Abramoff's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, in a joint motion, have asked a federal judge to recommend that Abramoff serve his 70-month sentence at the federal correctional facility in Cumberland, Maryland.
The request to Judge Paul Huck says that Abramoff's cooperation in the pay-to-play, influence peddling investigation is still crucial and, "will continue after he is incarcerated," according to the motion filed yesterday.
Abramoff and his partner Adam Kidan pleaded guilty to defrauding lenders of more than $60 million in the SunCruz gambling casino scandal in Florida. Abramoff, who has been sentenced to more than five-years in prison for his SunCruz plea is awaiting sentencing in the Washington influence peddling scandal. He will serve both sentences concurrently.
The court filing states that Cumberland facility is within driving distance of Washington and Mr. Abramoff's incarceration there, "will facilitate the government's access to him and, therefore, the ongoing investigation." The motion also suggests that the proximity to Washington would help prosecutors reduce costs and travel time.
Weeks ago in another court filing, prosecutors and Abramoff's lawyer, asked a Judge Huck to delay Abramoff's prison term for three-months saying reporting to jail earlier, "would significantly impede on-going investigations in which his participation is critical." The judge expressed at a hearing exasperation with the slow pace of the Washington investigation and advised attorneys not to expect any further extensions.
If there is a problem accommodation Abramoff in the Cumberland facility, an alternative was suggested in the filing, the federal correctional facility in Morgantown, West Virginia, which, "is also within driving distance of Washington, D.C.," according to the court papers.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15249272/
Could get 27 months to 10 years in prison at January 19th sentencing
Bill Haber / AP file
Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, has become the first member of congress to plead guilty in the Capitol Hill lobbying scandal probe.
Updated: 1 hour ago
WASHINGTON - Rep. Bob Ney pleaded guilty Friday to bribery charges stemming from the Jack Abramoff influence-peddling investigation.
The Ohio Republican was the first member of Congress convicted in the scandal that has tainted the White House as well as Capitol Hill. He faces up to 10 years in prison.
Ney confessed his wrongdoing before U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle in a federal courthouse a few blocks distant from the Capitol, where until recently he wielded a chairman's gavel.
The Ohio Republican did not speak to reporters as he made his way into the courthouse. It was his first public appearance since entering an alcohol treatment program last month.
Inside the courtroom, Huvelle spent nearly a half-hour asking the sandy-haired, red-faced congressman a series of questions about whether he understood the charges and agreed that he had taken money, gifts and favors in return for official actions on behalf of Abramoff and his clients.
At the end she asked him how he pleaded to the conspiracy count, he replied, "I plead guilty your honor."
Huvelle said that while the maximum penalty is 10 years in prison and $500,000 in fines, the government had agreed to recommend a penalty of 27 months in prison.
She added that federal guidelines suggest a fine between $5,000 and $60,000.
Mark Touhey, Ney's lawyer, told the judge the congressman would resign from office before sentencing on Jan. 19. Ney's term in Congress expires before then, though, at noon on Jan 3.
Touhey also asked for Ney to be incarcerated in a facility that has an alcohol treatment program.
Ney is out on bond until his sentencing. He can travel within the United States.
Change of direction
Ney had consistently denied any wrongdoing in the investigation, an insistence that he maintained even after his former chief of staff pleaded guilty in May. The aide, Neil Volz, confessed to conspiring to corrupt the congressman and others with trips and other aid. Volz became a business partner of Abramoff after leaving the congressional payroll.
Ney had a unique power perch in the House when the year dawned, as chairman of the committee with jurisdiction over the internal workings of the 435-member House. Speaker Dennis Hastert pressured Ney into surrendering his committee chairmanship earlier this year as concern rippled through the GOP ranks about the Abramoff scandal.
Still, as recently as early summer, Ney said he intended to seek re-election in the sprawling, rural district in eastern Ohio he has represented since 1994. He changed his mind at the prodding of party leaders who feared the loss of his seat in November if he remained on the ballot.
Abramoff convenient incarceration
Just after the mid-term elections, on Nov. 15, disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff will report to federal prison on his own guilty pleas relating to the Florida based SunCruz casino scandal.
Prosecutors and Abramoff's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, in a joint motion, have asked a federal judge to recommend that Abramoff serve his 70-month sentence at the federal correctional facility in Cumberland, Maryland.
The request to Judge Paul Huck says that Abramoff's cooperation in the pay-to-play, influence peddling investigation is still crucial and, "will continue after he is incarcerated," according to the motion filed yesterday.
Abramoff and his partner Adam Kidan pleaded guilty to defrauding lenders of more than $60 million in the SunCruz gambling casino scandal in Florida. Abramoff, who has been sentenced to more than five-years in prison for his SunCruz plea is awaiting sentencing in the Washington influence peddling scandal. He will serve both sentences concurrently.
The court filing states that Cumberland facility is within driving distance of Washington and Mr. Abramoff's incarceration there, "will facilitate the government's access to him and, therefore, the ongoing investigation." The motion also suggests that the proximity to Washington would help prosecutors reduce costs and travel time.
Weeks ago in another court filing, prosecutors and Abramoff's lawyer, asked a Judge Huck to delay Abramoff's prison term for three-months saying reporting to jail earlier, "would significantly impede on-going investigations in which his participation is critical." The judge expressed at a hearing exasperation with the slow pace of the Washington investigation and advised attorneys not to expect any further extensions.
If there is a problem accommodation Abramoff in the Cumberland facility, an alternative was suggested in the filing, the federal correctional facility in Morgantown, West Virginia, which, "is also within driving distance of Washington, D.C.," according to the court papers.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15249272/