Traficant says he'll run again, appeal conviction

Traficant: "I will not allow the government to get rid of Jim Traficant without a fight."

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Ohio Rep. Jim Traficant said Friday he will appeal his conviction on federal bribery, racketeering and tax fraud charges and said he has no plans to resign.

"I intend to run as an independent in November for the 17th District of Ohio," Traficant said in a statement. "I will not allow the government to get rid of Jim Traficant without a fight."

A jury in Cleveland convicted the nine-term maverick Democrat of 10 felony counts of bribery, racketeering and tax fraud on Thursday. An aide told CNN that Traficant might return to Washington next Tuesday, when votes resume in the House.

His decision on when to return will be based on how much time he devotes to his appeal and the duties he will be allowed to perform, the aide said. House rules state that a member of Congress convicted for crimes that bear a sentence of two or more years in prison "should refrain from participation in the business of each committee of which he is a member, and a Member should refrain from voting on any question at a meeting of the House."

The rules do not, however, say the member must refrain from voting in Congress. Since Traficant has no committee assignments, that part of the rule would not affect him.

The aide to Traficant said he would seek clarification Monday from the House ethics panel.

In his statement, the 60-year-old congressman from Youngstown criticized Judge Lesley Wells, federal judge who handled the case in a Cleveland courtroom.

"I will appeal the verdict because the judge very clearly mishandled this case and was prejudiced toward the government's case from day one," Traficant said.

"My strong stances on matters such as the Chinese influence on the DNC [Democratic National Committee], the failures of Janet Reno's Justice Department, and the worthlessness of the IRS have placed a target on my back," he said.

Throughout the eight-week trial, Traficant repeatedly referred to a government vendetta against him, despite repeated admonishments from the judge that he was not to use that as his defense.

It is unclear whether Traficant will hire a lawyer to help him in his appeal. Although he has no legal training, he acted as his own lawyer during the trial.

Traficant told reporters Thursday that he had no regrets about defending himself in his trial. He said it would have cost him thousands of dollars to hire a lawyer, for the same result.

On Friday, Traficant's aide said the congressman was feeling "OK."

"I was encouraged by the fight that I sense that he still has in him," said spokesman Charlie Straub. "He really believes that he beat 'em."

Traficant has lost none of his trademark audacity.

In his written statement, he broke free of the decorum usually followed by members of Congress and repeated the strong language he used outside the courthouse to rebuff a call from House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, D-Missouri, for his resignation.

"I didn't ask for him to resign as a result of him being an impotent minority leader and for having screwed up the party," the statement said.

Traficant is a Democrat in name only. He votes almost exclusively with Republicans in the House, and the Democratic caucus stripped him of his committee assignments when he voted for Republican Dennis Hastert rather than endorsing Gephardt for speaker.

The House Ethics Committee has launched an investigation of Traficant. In the meantime, any member of Congress can go to the floor and call for a resolution to expel a convicted congressman: Several congressional aides, Republican and Democrat alike, speculated that could happen next week.

One Democratic aide said if Traficant decided to continue voting as a member of Congress next week, he would be surprised if some other member did not ask for Traficant's expulsion.

Approving a motion to expel Traficant would require a two-thirds majority of House members.

The former Mahoning County, Ohio sheriff faces a prison sentence of up to 63 years if the sentences are served consecutively, though Judge Wells is expected to have him serve them concurrently. He will remain free on bond until sentencing June 27.