Former Democratic Congresswoman Corrine Brown was convicted of more than a dozen federal fraud charges. | AP Photo Former U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown convicted of federal fraud charges

Former U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown’s motto used to be “Corrine delivers,” something the Democrat couldn’t do when it came time to defend herself for her fraudulent conduct.

On Thursday, a federal jury in Jacksonville convicted the former 12-term congresswoman on 18 of 22 corruption counts ranging from mail fraud to filing a false federal tax return.


Brown and Ronnie Simmons, her chief of staff who previously pleaded guilty in the case, were named last year in a 24-count federal indictment relating to a scheme led by Brown in which she used her official post as a member of Congress to help solicit $800,000 in contributions for a sham education charity, One Door for Education.

Brown even took the stand during her trial to plead her case and broke down at one point during the trial.

The conviction came one day after a juror was removed by a judge for privately musing to another juror about “higher beings” during deliberations. The exact nature of the comment was unclear, but the removal of a juror during deliberations is often grounds for a defendant to attempt an appear. She will be sentenced later this summer.

Brown was indicted last year — just as she was running in a newly drawn seat, Florida’s 5th congressional district. Brown had once described her prosecution as a “half-truth witch-hunt."

Lashing out at the news media for what she claimed was unfair coverage and persecution of her as a minority, Brown also falsely claimed the district would disadvantage minorities, but she was beaten by now-U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, an African-American Democrat.

Following the verdict on Thursday afternoon, Brown, escorted by family members and others, slowly walked out of the federal courthouse through a gaggle of television cameras and reporters to an awaiting black Mercedes. As reporters shouted a few questions at her, she kept silent as she kept moving arm-in-arm with her pastor and family members toward the car. Some yelled “we love you Corrine.”

James Smith, Brown’s attorney, told reporters that Brown was “disappointed” with the verdict but “respects” the jury’s decision.

He vowed the case against Brown was a long way from over.

“This is just the first quarter and there’s plenty of time left,” he said, saying he would file a motion for a new trial but did not elaborate about what grounds he would pursue.

“This is the first phase of the process, not the end,” he repeated to reporters outside the federal courthouse.

Smith said he planned to call many more witnesses at Brown's sentencing hearing than appeared at the corruption trial, and told reporters that the congresswoman had a long record of public service.

“Nobody’s life is a snapshot. She will not be defined by what happened in this courtroom,” he said. “Just remember, you don’t sentence someone based on the charges but on their life. Even her harshest critics would admit, she’s done a lot of good things.”

In a statement, acting U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow, however, said Brown "chose greed and personal gain over the sacred trust given to her by the community that she served for many years."

"These guilty verdicts underscore our Office's resolve in holding public officials at all levels of government accountable for their actions. In this case, former Congresswoman Brown stole money that was donated on the false promise of helping further the educational goals of underprivileged children.”

POLITICO reporters Marc Caputo and Sergio Bustos contributed to this story.

