MONEY LAUNDERING LAW INTENDED FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING NOW TARGETS CAMPAIGN MONEY

AUSTIN - Criminal charges against Rep. Tom DeLay hinge on prosecutors'
efforts to apply a money laundering law intended to hinder the drug trade
to state campaign finances.

DeLay is accused of laundering $190,000 in "dirty" corporate money -
corporate money is generally illegal in Texas elections - through his
political action committee to the national GOP and back to seven Republican
candidates for the state House. The swap was an effort to conceal the
source of the money, prosecutors contend.

Critics call the prosecution a stretch of the law to facilitate a
politically motivated witch hunt.

District Attorney Ronnie Earle "is trying to use money laundering laws to
prosecute someone who he disagrees vehemently with over political and
philosophical issues," said Todd Smith, a Republican political consultant.

Houston attorney David Berg, an active Texas Democrat, called the charges
"a very odd application of the money laundering statute."

"What the Legislature wanted was to attack drug dealing. There was no
intent for the statute to be applied this wide," Berg said.

One count of money laundering and one count of conspiracy to launder money
remain the only charges against DeLay after a judge dismissed another
conspiracy charge last week. Prosecutors are expected to appeal the
dismissal, possibly stalling the case several weeks.

DeLay's legal team argues that corporate and non-corporate campaign
donations were kept in separate accounts and were never intended to be a
trade-off for support of the Texas candidates.

The law, written by then-state Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Laredo Democrat, does
not specify that only drug money can be used to violate the money
laundering law. It applies to proceeds of criminal activity, or "any
offense that is classified as a felony under the laws of this state or the
United States."

Under that definition, a violation of the Texas Election Code would be
considered proceeds of criminal activity. Prosecutors must prove the
election code was violated when corporations contributed to the political
group, constituting criminal activity, before they can prove DeLay
laundered money.

"It would appear to me that if they knew from beginning they were going to
be using corporate money for purposes prohibited by Texas law ... that is
the pure definition of money laundering, that's how you launder money,"
said Glenn Smith, a Democratic strategist. "This is exactly the sort of
financial transaction the law was intended to apply to."

Still, it's clear that Texas lawmakers were targeting illegal drug trade
when they adopted the law.

"The intent was more to paralyze those attempting to launder illegal drug
money," said Cuellar, now a congressman. "It was more of a tool for state
law enforcement to be able to prosecute those persons laundering drug money."

While legislative intent can sometimes be used as a legal defense, it's
unlikely to apply in this case, a legal scholar said.

"Even if drug dealers were the main topic of legislative concern, the final
product is broader in its coverage," said George Dix, a law professor at
the University of Texas. "Whether that means legislators just didn't
adequately transfer its intent into the language ... I don't think it
matters. The statutory language is clear."

Defense attorneys hope for the dismissal of all charges against DeLay after
a judge hears their arguments about alleged prosecutorial misconduct by
Earle. The attorneys contend Earle "shopped around" DeLay's case to three
different grand juries before he got the indictments he wanted.

Judge Pat Priest has not yet set a hearing for arguments on that issue.

DeLay wants a speedy resolution to give him more time to reclaim the House
majority seat he lost when Earle first brought the charges against him.
House Republican rules prevent anyone from serving in the position as long
as criminal indictments are pending. Even if DeLay is acquitted in time to
regain the seat when Congress reconvenes early next year, the case may have
permanently crippled the Republican's once-iron-fisted power.

Earle, a longtime Texas Democrat, continues to limit his public comments as
the case against DeLay progresses. He has said his job is to prosecute
violations of Texas law without regard to political party, and emphasized
he has prosecuted more Democrats than Republicans.

Still, even some Democrats question whether the statute used to prosecute
DeLay was the appropriate one.

"I'm a Democrat and I'd like to see Delay out of power, but I don't think
he's getting a fair shake," Berg said. "They're stretching the law to reach
him when the law should be stretched to protect individuals."