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A federal court judge has set a date for one of the two upcoming trials for former Arizona Congressman Rick Renzi.
Renzi, who in 2006 was named one of the “20 Most Corrupt Members of Congress” by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, will begin his first trial on March 16.
The trial was originally set to take place in April 2008, but legal wranglings by Renzi’s attorneys, including a failed motion to have the case dismissed last week, have delayed the start of the trial.
Renzi is charged with fraud, money-laundering, and extortion, stemming from a government land-swap deal that prosecutors say illegally benefited a former business partner of Renzi’s.
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In another upcoming trial, Renzi will face charges that he used money he took from his family insurance company’s account to fund his 2002 Congressional campaign.
No date has been set for that trial.
