Update: 07/30/02

Traficant Sentenced to 8 Years
Less than week after being expelled from the U.S. House of Representatives, former Congressman James Traficant of Ohio was sentenced today to eight years in federal prison for his April 11 conviction on charges of bribery, corruption and tax evasion.

At his sentencing hearing, Traficant argued that his expulsion from Congress had been punishment enough. Judge Lesley Wells of the U.S. District Court in Cleveland, disagreed, calling Traficant's expulsion a separate political matter.

Judge Wells refused to set bail for Traficant, ordering that service of his term should begin immediately. Denial of bail also sets aside all pending appeals to Traficant's conviction.

A former county sheriff, Traficant had been elected to Congress nine times by the people of his Mahoning Valley, Ohio district. He has promised to run for re-election as an independent candidate in November and to serve from jail if elected.

Traficant Expelled from House
Democratic Rep. James Traficant of Ohio has been expelled from The U.S. House of Representatives for nine violations of the House Code of Conduct arising from his recent felony conviction.

By a vote of 420-1, his fellow lawmakers yesterday made Traficant only the second member of the House expelled since the Civil War and the fifth in congressional history. Voting against the resolution expelling Traficant was Rep. Gary Condit (D-California, 18th). Nine members voted "present."

Rep. Michael Myers (D-Pennsylvania), was expelled by the House in 1980 after being convicted on bribery and conspiracy charges resulting from the FBI's Abscam sting operation.

The resolution expelling Traficant (H. Res. 495) read simply, "Resolved, That, pursuant to article I, section 5, clause 2 of the United States Constitution, Representative James A. Traficant, Jr., be, and he hereby is expelled, from the House of Representatives."

Dubbed the "Minute Man" by colleagues in honor of his always flamboyant and often inflammatory one-minute speeches, Traficant awaits a July 30 sentencing hearing that could send him to jail for up to seven years.

Other punishments available to the House, including censure and public reprimand were not considered.

The House reject 146-285, a motion to postpone the proceedings until Congress returns from its summer break on Sept. 4. The motion was offered by Rep. Steven C. LaTourette (R-Ohio, 19th), who argued that the House should not take action until after Traficant had been officially sentenced and had expended all legal avenues of appeal to his felony conviction.

Addressing the House, Traficant remained colorfully defiant to the end. "I'll go to jail before I resign and admit to something I didn't do," he said.

Repeating his claim that the FBI and IRS had conspired against him and had threatened witnesses in order to get them to testify against him, Traficant stated, "I'll go to jail, but I'll be damned if I'll got to jail for a government that threatened these witnesses to death."

Despite his expulsion from the House and pending prison term, Traficant said he planned to run for re-election in November and was prepared to run his campaign from jail. "I'm running as an independent and don't be surprised if I don't win behind bars," he said. 

On April 11, a Cleveland Ohio federal jury found the nine-term congressman guilty of taking bribes from businesses in his Mahoning Valley district, accepting kickbacks from staff members, filing fraudulent tax returns and forcing members of his congressional staff to perform manual labor on his farm.

Traficant, serving his ninth term when expelled, was first elected to the House in 1984 after successfully defending himself against federal charges of accepting money from mobsters while serving as county sheriff. He also defended himself in his most recent trial.

Referring to his 1984 trial, Traficant told the House, "I know why I was targeted, I was the only one who beat them [the FBI and IRS.]"

Officially a Democrat, Traficant often angered his own party's leadership by voting with Republicans and expressing decidedly conservative views on many issues of public policy.

"You've run this country for 20 years, Democrats, and you have made the IRS and FBI so strong that the American people are scared to death of them," he said.

Concluding his remarks before the House, Traficant warned lawmakers, "As members of Congress, I want you to think of this: next time you might be targeted."