PHILADELPHIA _ Former U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah's push to overturn his conviction on corruption-related charges was met Friday with tough questioning from the federal judge who presided over his trial.
Lawyers for Fattah leaned heavily on the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to vacate the conviction of former Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell _ a ruling that narrowed the definition of political bribery and came just days after a federal jury in June convicted Fattah in a racketeering conspiracy case with some parallels.
Yet U.S. District Judge Harvey Bartle III appeared to find more distinctions than similarities between Fattah's conduct and the crimes of which the former governor had been accused.
The judge did not issue a ruling Friday on Fattah's bid for a new trial.
"Once the bribery counts fall, we believe all the other counts fall as well," said Noel Francisco, who represented McDonnell before the Supreme Court.
He argued Friday on behalf of Herbert Vederman, a former Philadelphia deputy mayor and a Fattah fundraiser, who was convicted of bribing the ex-congressman in hope of landing a White House appointment to an ambassador post.
But Justice Department prosecutor Jonathan Kravis accused Francisco and Fattah lawyer Bruce Merenstein of "mischaracterizing the evidence" and misapplying the lessons of the McDonnell decision.
"The government presented ample evidence from which the jury could determine corrupt intent," Kravis said.
In overturning the McDonnell verdict, the Supreme Court sketched out more precise guidelines for prosecutors building cases under the law that bars public officials from taking gifts in exchange for official actions. The justices held that federal bribery laws do not cover routine courtesies such as setting up meetings, hosting events, or making calls on behalf of constituents.
McDonnell, a Republican, had been accused of using his office to help promote a dietary supplement backed by a wealthy businessman and supporter. McDonnell asked subordinates to push state universities to do research studies on the product, and McDonnell's wife hosted a launch party for the business at the governor's mansion.
In exchange, the Justice Department alleged, the businessman showered the McDonnells with more than $165,000 in gifts, including trips on a private plane, designer clothes, a Rolex, and payments toward a wedding reception for the governor's daughter.
McDonnell's lawyers maintained that despite the gifts, he took no official action to benefit the businessman and did not urge any state officials to do so. He claimed that he merely helped a constituent gain access to key government officials by setting up introductions.
Lawyers for Fattah and Vederman pressed similar arguments Friday to defend the relationship between the men.
As prosecutors told it at trial, Vederman made cash payments to Fattah's children, paid college tuition for Fattah's South African au pair, and gave $18,000 intended to help the congressman close on a vacation home in the Poconos.
Fattah, in turn, gave Vederman's girlfriend a job in his district office and lobbied White House officials _ including President Barack Obama _ in hope of landing Vederman a job as an ambassador.
Francisco said Friday that by allowing his client's conviction to stand based on such harmless favors, Bartle risked criminalizing the way Washington politics has worked for decades.
"What you'll have done is make nearly every member of Congress a felon," he said. "Members of Congress make calls of support all the time on behalf of well-heeled donors."
Bartle appeared to disagree, drawing a distinction between halfhearted gestures to pacify donors and the lengths to which Fattah went on Vederman's behalf.
"He's hand-delivering a letter to the president of the United States," the judge said. "His staff was contacting the White House. He set up a meeting with Gov. Rendell and Jim Messina," former deputy White House chief of staff. "Clearly, (Fattah) wasn't just saying, 'This guy's great.'"
Fattah's bribery conviction was only one piece of the 22-count racketeering conspiracy case that prosecutors brought against him.
He was also convicted of schemes involving the payback of a $1 million illegal campaign loan during his failed 2007 bid to become mayor of Philadelphia, and his attempt to pay off a political consultant by directing congressional earmarks to a fake nonprofit he encouraged the man to create.
Lawyers for the ex-congressman and his co-defendants have also asked Bartle to toss guilty verdicts on those charges as well.
Fattah resigned from office after his conviction, ending a two-decade career representing a district that included most of Philadelphia and parts of Montgomery County.
