Jurors Acquit Former Rep. Lukens
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WASHINGTON — Ex-Rep. Donald Lukens is not guilty of three bribery counts, a U.S. District Court jury ruled Wednesday. But jurors declared themselves at an impasse on two other counts and were ordered to deliberate further.
Still remaining were one conspiracy count and one bribery count covering Lukens’ acceptance of $15,000 from two Ohio businessmen on whose behalf the then-congressman later contacted a federal agency.
Lukens declined to comment on the partial verdict. But his lawyer, Harvey Volzer, said: “Any time you have a ‘not guilty,’ it’s a good thing.”
The two remaining counts each carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The counts on which the jury acquitted Lukens involved his acceptance of a total of $12,500 during the summer of 1990, after he lost the Republican primary in Ohio’s 8th Congressional District.
The counts on which the jury did not reach a verdict cover money Lukens took about a week before he became a lame duck--two $7,500 checks, one from a man he never met.
Lukens testified that he considered the money a loan.
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