Rep. James A. Traficant Jr., the often blustery congressman who insisted on defending himself against what he called "a government vendetta," was convicted Thursday of federal corruption charges. An Ohio Democrat in his ninth term, Traficant was found guilty on all of the 10 charges he faced, including racketeering, bribery, fraud, filing false tax returns, receiving gifts and free labor from businessmen for his political help, taking cash kickbacks, and free labor from staff. Furthermore, he was ordered by the jury to forfeit $96,000 in ill-gotten gains. Traficant, who faces up to 63 years in prison, currently remains free on bail pending sentencing, which has been set for June 27.

Traficant refuses to resign from the House of Representatives, stating, "I still have some rights as an American. I've never been a quitter. I'm not going to quit now." He contends that the government came after him because he beat the FBI in a racketeering case 19 years ago, when, as the sheriff of Mahoning County, he was accused of taking mob money. Consequently, that following year, Traficant was elected to the House, where he quickly became known for his disorderly hair, crude style of dress, and tempestuous floor speeches that often ended with the infamous phrase "Beam me up!" According to reporters, the trial was "raucous, often comic and occasionally vulgar, with Traficant roaring at the judge, crudely questioning the prosecutor's manhood, and using barnyard epithets to describe what he thought of the government's case." For more information on this case and the history surrounding it, visit the first three sites listed above. To view a court copy of Traficant's indictment, viewers may visit the fourth, presented by FindLaw.com. In order to access this document, viewers must scroll down to the James Traficant subject title. The fifth site takes viewers to Traficant's home page, which offers biographical data, speeches, press releases, and more. Finally, the last site reveals Traficant's congressional voting history.