FORMER LAWMAKER TO ENTER GUILTY PLEA

Former U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown, D-Fla., whose initial conviction in a charity and tax fraud case was tossed out by an appeals court, will plead guilty before a second trial, according to court documents filed Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Corrigan scheduled a change of plea hearing today for Brown, a once-powerful Florida Democrat who had previously pleaded not guilty to 18 charges including mail and wire fraud, conspiracy and filing false tax returns.

Brown’s lawyers did not respond to emails seeking comment. It was not clear which specific charges Brown would plead guilty to.

The second trial had been set to begin Sept. 12. Brown’s original 2017 conviction was thrown out by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals because Corrigan improperly removed during deliberations a juror who had said the “Holy Spirit” told him she was innocent.

Brown, 75, served about two years of a five-year sentence before her release in April 2020 because of fears her age made her more susceptible to the coronavirus pandemic in prison.

Before the fraud case, Brown represented the Jacksonville area in Congress for about 25 years.

Prosecutors said she siphoned money from the One Door for Education Foundation for personal use.