Appeals court reverses conviction against Jeff Fortenberry

A federal appeals court on Tuesday overturned a federal conviction against former Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, saying the decision to try the Nebraska lawmaker in California over alleged foreign campaign donations violated his due process rights.

In a decision published Tuesday, three judges of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco found that the nine-term Republican should not have been tried in Los Angeles, since the specific crimes he was prosecuted for occurred in Washington, D.C., and Nebraska. The panel also rejected prosecutors’ arguments that criminal conduct also occurs where it would have an effect on a federal investigation.

Fortenberry resigned from his seat in Congress in March 2022 after a Los Angeles jury convicted him of lying to federal authorities about receiving an illegal campaign contribution from a foreign national. Fortenberry faced pressure to step down both from congressional leadership and Nebraska’s then-Gov. Pete Ricketts.

Fortenberry and his wife praised Tuesday's decision. In a statement to The Associated Press, Fortenberry said “we are gratified by the Ninth Circuit’s decision,” and “Celeste and I would like to thank everyone who has stood by us and supported us with their kindness and friendship.”

A Justice Department spokesperson said the decision could allow a retrial.

“The ruling does not preclude a retrial on the charges that then-Congressman Fortenberry made multiple false statements to federal agents," Thom Mrozek, a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles, said in a statement. "We are evaluating potential next steps before deciding how best to move forward.”

Federal prosecutors allege that Gilbert Chagoury, a Nigerian-Lebanese businessman living in Paris, gave Fortenberry a $30,000 campaign contribution at a 2016 Los Angeles fundraiser by way of strawman donors. The organizer of that fundraiser, Elias Ayoub, became a cooperating witness with the FBI and told Fortenberry about the source of the funds in a 2018 phone call recorded by investigators.

But in 2019, Fortenberry denied awareness of any foreign campaign contributions when approached by federal investigators in Nebraska and Washington, D.C. Fortenberry was charged in 2021 with making false statements to investigators and scheming to falsify and conceal material facts. Federal prosecutors insisted on trying the Nebraska lawmaker in Los Angeles, noting that the illegal contributions were given there, though he was never charged with receiving illegal contributions.

Fortenberry was sentenced to two years’ probation and ordered to pay a $25,000 fine.

The ruling from the Ninth Circuit wasn’t completely unexpected. During oral arguments in July, Judge James Donato, one of the three judges reviewing Fortenberry’s case and the author of Tuesday’s ruling, indicated his support for the lawmaker’s arguments that the Justice Department violated his rights by trying him in Los Angeles.

Josh Gerstein contributed to this report.