sorry for all this, but this man is a badass, 60y/o man started a prison riot
Trial and expulsion
In 2002, Traficant was indicted on federal corruption charges for taking campaign funds for personal use. Again, he opted to represent himself, insisting that the trial was part of a vendetta against him dating back to his 1983 trial. After a two-month federal trial, on April 11, 2002, he was convicted of 10 felony counts including bribery, racketeering and tax evasion.[1] Per House rules, he lost his right to vote on legislation pending an investigation by the United States House Committee on Ethics.
Eventually, the House Ethics Committee recommended that Traficant be expelled from Congress. On July 24 the House voted to expel him by a 420–1 vote.[20] The sole vote against expulsion was Rep. Gary Condit, who at the time was in the midst of a scandal of his own and had been defeated in his reelection primary.[21] Traficant was the first representative to be expelled since Michael Myers's expulsion in 1980 as a result of the Abscam scandal.
After his expulsion, Traficant ran as an independent candidate for another term in the House while incarcerated at the United States Penitentiary, Allenwood.[22] He received 28,045 votes, or 15 percent, and became one of only a handful of individuals in the history of the United States to run for a federal office from prison. The election was won by one of his former aides, Tim Ryan.[23]
Prison and later life
Incarceration
James A. Traficant Jr. had the Federal Bureau of Prisons ID # 31213-060.[24] Traficant served his first seventeen months in federal prison at the United States Penitentiary in Allenwood. Shortly after, he was put in solitary confinement for incitement to riot after he told a guard, "People can't hear you. Speak up."[25] During the seven years of his incarceration, Traficant refused any visitors, saying that he didn't want anyone to see him. He was released on September 2, 2009, at age 68, and was subject to three years of probation.[26]
While in prison, Traficant received support from David Duke, who urged visitors to his personal website to donate to his personal fund. Duke posted a letter written by Traficant stating that he was targeted by the United States Department of Justice for, among other things, defending John Demjanjuk. Traficant also claimed, in the letter, that he knew facts about "Waco, Ruby Ridge, Pan Am Flight 103, Jimmy Hoffa and the John F. Kennedy assassination", which he may divulge in the future. Author Michael Collins Piper, who initially helped circulate Traficant's letter, said that "There's stuff I've written about Traficant that's showing up in places I don't even know. It's like (six) degrees of separation with the Internet now," and denied that Traficant had any direct connections to Duke.[27]
Release
Traficant was released from prison on September 2, 2009.[24] On September 6, 2009, 1200 supporters welcomed him home at a banquet with an Elvis impersonator, and a Traficant lookalike contest. "Welcome home Jimbo" was printed on T-shirts. "I think it's time to tell the FBI and the IRS that this is our country and we're tired—tired of the pressure, tired of the political targeting, tired of a powerful central government that is crippling America," he said. He also said he was considering running for his old seat in Congress. Traficant signed a limited, three-month contract to work as a part-time weekend talk radio host for Cleveland news/talk station WTAM in January 2010. His contract permitted him to quit if he chose to run for office.[28]
On November 2, 2009, a column by Traficant in the American Free Press continued his defense of the accused concentration camp guard John Demjanjuk.[29] Michael Collins Piper an AFP writer—who authored Target: Traficant, The Untold Story[30] – previously defended Traficant against his accusers.