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    • Former Nebraska U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry asks judge to drop refiled federal charges • Nebraska Examiner
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    Former Nebraska U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry asks judge to drop refiled federal charges • Nebraska Examiner

    Umito Posted on

    LINCOLN — Former Nebraska U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry has asked a judge to drop criminal charges that were refiled against him in a case that led him to resign his congressional seat.

    Fortenberry was convicted in 2022 of concealing illegal foreign donations to his congressional campaign and lying to federal agents about whether he knew they were illegal, based on recorded conversations with agents of the FBI and an informant. His trial took place at Central District of California, part because the charges related to a 2016 campaign fundraising event in that state.

    He later got his conviction overturned, successfully arguing that the charges were filed in the wrong jurisdiction.

    Motions allege political motivations

    This week, his lawyers filed a series of motions seeking evidence of any alleged political motivation for his prosecution.

    In court documents, federal prosecutors have denied any political intent in filing charges.

    The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the conviction in late 2023, ruling that Fortenberry should have been tried in Nebraska or Washington, D.C., where the conversations with investigators took place.

    blackberry LA
    U.S. Representative Jeff Fortenberry and his wife Celeste leave the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. (Paul Hammel/Nebraska Examiner)

    The appeals court concluded that the bulk of the charges related to an alleged cover-up on Fortenberry’s part, not the act of accepting the illegal campaign donation.

    Last May, a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., indicted Fortenberry again, this time with two crimes related to his interview with the FBI in D.C.: falsification and concealment of material facts and making false statements to federal investigators.

    A third initial charge stemmed from an FBI interview with Fortenberry at his Lincoln home. But the statute of limitations for that encounter expired before the new charges were filed.

    The recording was key evidence

    During the 2022 trial, prosecutors played a 2018 recording of Fortenberry speaking by phone with the California fundraiser organizer. Fortenberry was informed that the $30,000 collected was likely illegal and had been delivered in a paper bag.

    Fortenberry was charged with lying after he denied being told by the event organizer, who was then an FBI informant, about what the recording revealed he had been told. He also denied any knowledge of the “illicit contribution” during the fundraiser.

    According to the charges, Fortenberry knew that Lebanese billionaire Gilbert Chagoury, who lives in France, was the source of the money and that he had asked the organizer of the original event to organize another fundraiser for his campaign.

    Fortenberry claimed poor connection

    Fortenberry argued at trial that he had a poor telephone connection with the informant and may have misheard the call. He and his lawyers argued that he made the illegal charitable contributions after learning they were illegal.

    But the FBI and prosecutors say he was made aware of the problem earlier and did not raise his concerns with the Federal Election Commission.

    U.S. District Courthouse in Los Angeles, where the trial of U.S. Representative Jeff Fortenberry was held. (Paul Hammel/Nebraska Examiner)

    Fortenberry supported Chagoury’s organization, In Defense of Christians, which protects Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East. Chagoury admitted to making illegal donations and was fined $1.8 million.

    Documents filed in the new case make clear that federal prosecutors tried to negotiate a plea deal to help Fortenberry avoid the risk of further embarrassment and a potentially more serious sentence, including prison.

    Prosecutors offered a deal

    Prosecutors offered Fortenberry the opportunity to plead falsification and concealment of material facts and offered to recommend a sentence matching the time he had served on probation, his former community service hours and the same fine of $25,000.

    Fortenberry’s lawyers, according to the documents, rejected that offer and responded with the equivalent of a challenge, saying the government should drop the case altogether, allowing Fortenberry to assert his innocence after his conviction.

    They argued in a separate filing this week that they found no recent record of similar charges being refiled against anyone sentenced to probation. They also demanded that the prosecutor be removed from office because he questioned Fortenberry in July 2019.

    Prosecutors have not yet responded to the filings.

    At this point, the lawsuit is likely to extend to the next presidential administration. Fortenberry could have an ally in the White House if former President Donald Trump is elected. Trump said he believed Fortenberry was mistreated.

    And Trump is no stranger to asking his Justice Department to reconsider prosecutions he deems unfair.

    The former congressman has largely withdrawn from political life since his resignation. He went to work for a company owned by a former Sandhills Publishing donor and supporter, Tom Peed, according to court documents. He has denied any wrongdoing.

    GET THE MORNING NEWSPAPER.

    Umito
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