On November 24, 2010, a jury for the 331st Criminal District Court of Texas found former US House Majority Leader Tom DeLay guilty of money laundering and conspiracy after 19 hours of deliberation. The charges stemmed from DeLay's alleged violation of state election law by funneling corporate donations to his political action committee (PAC) through the Republican National Committee (RNC). After DeLay's indictment in October 2005, he stepped down as House Majority Leader and later resigned from Congress. DeLay was ultimately sentenced to three years in prison in what JURIST Commentator Bob Edgar called a "warning...about what can happen when lawmakers put themselves and their pursuit of power above the law."

Learn more about the controversy surrounding Tom DeLay and the laws governing corruption and campaign finance from the JURIST news archive.