Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell May Face Trial Again on Corruption Charges

The Washington Post’s Matt Zapotosky just revealed that the U.S. Attorney’s Office recommends putting former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell on trial again, and that the “final call” is up to Justice Department.

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As you will remember, McDonnell and his wife Maureen McDonnell, showed the true spirit of Republican “family values” when they were convicted on multiple corruption charges back in 2014, being hit with 14 counts and found guilty on 11 of them. He famously threw his wife under the bus, just another nod to the family values set.

U.S. District Judge James R. Spencer sentenced the former Virginia First Lady to just 12 months plus one day in prison. The U.S. Probation Office recommended 10 years of prison for Bob McDonnell, and he was eventually sentenced to just two, with two years of supervised release.

Later, his appeal attempt failed when the 4th Circuit’s three judge panel ruled unanimously that his conviction be upheld. His case eventually went before the Supreme Court, and SCOTUS unanimously vacated his conviction on June 27 of this year. At the time, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote,

“If the court below determines that there is sufficient evidence for a jury to convict Governor McDonnell of committing or agreeing to commit an ‘official act,’ his case may be set for a new trial. If the court instead determines that the evidence is insufficient, the charges against him must be dismissed. We express no view on that question.”

Of that ruling, Zapotosky reports, “experts say makes prosecuting corrupt politicians substantially more difficult than it was before. It is possible more successful challenges could lead to a further narrowing of corruption laws and hamper other investigations.”

It is no wonder that the U.S. Attorney’s Office is proceeding cautiously, given what is at stake. It is a contentious case: Trip Gabriel at The New York Times argued that the McDonnell trial symbolized “growing political partisanship,” and among the right wing media you see the suggestion that, “If Hillary Clinton were Bob McDonnell, she might be on trial now,” apparently on the grounds that the Republican talking point that Clinton is a “crook” is true because they say it is, despite all evidence to the contrary.

According to Zapotosky, “An attorney for McDonnell, a Justice Department spokeswoman and a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia all declined to comment,” and the Justice Department has until September 19 to decide whether to proceed.

Hrafnkell Haraldsson

Hrafnkell Haraldsson, a social liberal with leanings toward centrist politics has degrees in history and philosophy. His interests include, besides history and philosophy, human rights issues, freedom of choice, religion, and the precarious dichotomy of freedom of speech and intolerance. He brings a slightly different perspective to his writing, being that he is neither a follower of an Abrahamic faith nor an atheist but a polytheist, a modern-day Heathen who follows the customs and traditions of his Norse ancestors. He maintains his own blog, A Heathen’s Day, which deals with Heathen and Pagan matters, and Mos Maiorum Foundation www.mosmaiorum.org, dedicated to ethnic religion. He has also contributed to NewsJunkiePost, GodsOwnParty and Pagan+Politics.