Ethics Panel Delays Jackson Jr. Probe Again
WASHINGTON (CBS) -- With the retrial of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich coming up next spring, the House ethics committee has agreed to hold off on its investigation into whether U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. was involved in Blagojevich's alleged attempt to sell a Senate seat.
The panel had already delayed their probe once before at the request of federal prosecutors.
The committee announced Tuesday that it would comply with a request from the Justice Department to take no action on its investigation with the Blagojevich case still unresolved.
It is standard practice for the committee to hold off on its own investigations when the department believes a congressional probe could interfere with a federal investigation.
The ethics panel is looking into whether Jackson, or someone acting on his behalf, offered to raise millions of dollars for then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich in exchange for an appointment to the Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama.
In August, Blagojevich was convicted of one count of lying to the FBI, but jurors deadlocked on 23 other counts, including those related to the alleged attempt to sell the Senate seat.
Blagojevich's retrial is set to begin April 20.
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