A federal judge has denied former U.S. Senator Robert Menendez’s request to delay his sentencing for charges including bribery, extortion, and corruption-related offenses. Menendez, who was convicted in July on 16 counts, including wire fraud, obstruction of justice, and acting as a foreign agent to Egypt, will be sentenced on January 29. He faces up to 222 years in prison, though a maximum sentence is unlikely.
Menendez’s legal team had argued that delaying the sentencing would avoid potentially influencing the trial of his wife, Nadine Menendez, who is facing similar charges. They expressed concerns that if Menendez were sentenced before her trial, the outcome might prejudice the jurors in her case. According to his defense attorneys, Menendez’s sentencing during his wife’s trial would create an “unnecessary and overwhelming risk” of contaminating the proceedings.
In a letter from Nadine Menendez’s attorney, Barry Coburn, it was stated that a sentencing close to her trial could have a “devastating impact” on her ability to participate meaningfully in her defense. Coburn argued that such a timeline would make it difficult for her to concentrate on her own trial.
Despite these concerns, U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein rejected the request for a delay. However, the judge agreed to move Nadine Menendez’s trial from January to February. Her trial is now scheduled to begin on February 5.
Robert Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey, was convicted after a nine-week trial in which prosecutors presented evidence of a yearslong bribery scheme. Among the evidence presented were gold bars, $480,000 in cash, and a Mercedes-Benz convertible, which were recovered in a raid at Menendez’s New Jersey home.
Following his conviction and growing pressure from Senate colleagues, Menendez resigned from the Senate in August. Nadine Menendez had previously pleaded not guilty to similar charges. Her trial was delayed for medical treatment related to her breast cancer diagnosis.
