Monday, August 06, 2007

Congress freezes Dollar Bill Jefferson ethics probe at DOJ request.


From Raw Story:

The House Ethics Committee stopped its probe into the actions of Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) upon the request of the Justice Department. The Justice Department had warned that the investigation would interfere with the government's prosecution of Jefferson, who was indicted on 16 public corruption counts in June.

"[A]fter careful deliberation, the Investigative Subcommittee has voted to refrain at this time, [emphasis original] from attempting to interview or depose witnesses linked to the criminal proceedings involving Representative Jefferson," according to a Friday, Aug. 3 press release from the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.

The Committee added that it had received 'multiple communications' from the Department of Justice, "expressing concern that such investigative actions might create legal or factual issues that would complicate or impede the criminal prosecution and related law enforcement efforts in this matter."

But the ethics investigators also said that they would "consider pursuing avenues of inquiry that it concludes do not interfere with the criminal indictment" of Jefferson.


Here is the court's opinion of FBI raid on Jefferson's home.

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