Ex-New York State Assembly Speaker Silver loses bid to avoid retrial

[March 21, 2018]    NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal judge on Tuesday rejected former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's bid to dismiss his indictment on corruption charges, clearing the way for a possible retrial after his earlier conviction had been thrown out.

Former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver exits the Manhattan U.S. District Courthouse in New York City, U.S., May 3, 2016. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo

U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan said Silver's arguments for dismissing or narrowing the indictment "run counter to the law," and there was no basis to limit the maximum sum he might be required to forfeit.

Last July, the federal appeals court in Manhattan overturned Silver's November 2015 conviction and 12-year prison sentence, citing a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision narrowing what kind of conduct could support corruption prosecutions.

But it also said prosecutors had sufficient evidence to prove the honest services fraud, extortion and money laundering counts on which Silver had been convicted. Silver has been free on bail.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Tom Brown)

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