杰斐逊就“冷钱”案上诉要求重申

    A court in the state of Virginia is reviewing a legal case against a congressman who had $90,000 in his freezer.
    弗吉尼亚州一家法院正在复审一起针对一位把钱藏在冰箱的国会议员的案件。

    Former U.S. Congressman William Jefferson has been in prison since 2012 after being found guilty of corruption. He is asking a federal court to overturn the guilty ruling against him.
    前美国国会议员威廉·杰弗逊(William Jefferson)自2012年被判犯有腐败罪后一直被监禁。他正要求联邦法院推翻对他的有罪判决。

    After a jury found him guilty, a judge sentenced Jefferson to 13 years in prison. It was the longest prison sentence ever given to a member of Congress.
    在陪审团裁定他有罪后,法官判处了杰斐逊13年监禁。这是对一名国会议员判处的最长刑期。

    Jefferson is a Democrat who represented New Orleans, Louisiana in Congress.
    民主党人杰斐逊是一位代表路易斯安那州新奥尔良市的国会议员。

    He was found guilty of trying to influence leaders in Nigeria and other African nations to help an American business that provided his family with money and stock. The American business wanted to set up cable television, telephone and internet services in Africa.
    他被判犯有企图影响尼日利亚等非洲国家领导人,以帮助一家给他的家庭提供现金和股票的美国企业的罪行。这家美国企业希望在非洲设立有线电视、电话和互联网服务。

    "Cold cash' in food boxes
    藏在食品盒里面的冷钱

    The case received a lot of attention in Nigeria. One reason was that $90,000 in $100 bills was found in food boxes in a freezer in the congressman's Washington D.C. apartment. The case became the subject of jokes on American and Nigerian television. Television hosts called the money, "cold cash," or "cold money."
    这起案件在尼日利亚受到了很多关注。原因之一就是有9万美元的一百美元面值的钞票在这名国会议员位于华盛顿特区的公寓的冰箱的食品盒里面被发现。该案件成为了美国和尼日利亚电视上的笑料,电视台主持人称这些钱为“冷钱”。

    During the trial, the government said Jefferson was recorded saying he needed money to persuade Nigeria's vice president, Atiku Abubakar, to approve the American company's business deals.
    在审判期间,美国政府声称,录到了杰斐逊说他需要资金说服尼日利亚副总统阿提库·阿布巴卡尔(Atiku Abubakar)批准这家美国公司的商业交易。

    Asked if he delivered the money during a secretly recorded discussion, Jefferson said he had given the "African art" to the Nigerian vice president. The government said those words were "code" for cash.
    在一次秘密录音的讨论中,杰斐逊被问到是否送出了这笔钱,他说已经把这些“非洲艺术品”送给了尼日利亚副总统。美国政府称,这些话就是现金的“暗语”。

    But Jefferson and his wife, Andrea, later wrote that they never were asked and never gave money to any government official.
    但是杰斐逊和他的妻子安德烈后来写道,他们从未被提问,也从未给任何政府官员送钱。

    During his trial, the government played a video of Jefferson accepting a briefcase that the government said was filled with $100,000 in $100 bills. It was that money -- missing $10,000 -- which was found in Jefferson's freezer, the government argued.
    在审判期间,美国政府播放了一则视频,视频中杰斐逊接受了一个公文包,美国政府称这个公文包中装满了10万美元的一百元面值的现钞。美国政府认为,这就是在杰斐逊的冰箱中发现的那些钱,只是少了1万美元。

    John Campbell is a former United States ambassador to Nigeria. Campbell said the case received "attention" in Nigeria because it had so many unusual details and Abubakar was a senior government official.
    约翰·坎贝尔(John Campbell)是前美国驻尼日利亚大使。坎贝尔表示,这起案件在尼日利亚颇受关注,因为它具有如此多不寻常的细节,而阿布巴卡尔是一位高级政府官员。

    Abubakar twice ran unsuccessfully for president and is reported to be a possible presidential candidate in the next Nigerian national elections.
    阿布巴卡尔进行了两次不成功的总统竞选,而且据报道下次尼日利亚全国大选他可能会是一位潜在的总统候选人。

    Why the case did not get more attention
    为什么这起案件没有获得更多关注

    Campbell said the case might have gotten even more attention if corruption was not common in Nigeria.
    坎贝尔表示,如果腐败案在尼日利亚不常见,这起案件可能就会得到更多关注。

    Now, Jefferson is appealing the guilty ruling, which he wants overturned. His lawyers argue that the U.S. Supreme Court last year redefined how corruption cases should be decided.
    杰斐逊现在正对这起有罪判决进行上诉,希望推翻它。他的律师辩解称,美国最高法院去年重新界定了如何判决腐败案件。

    In 2016, the Supreme Court overturned the guilty ruling against former Virginia Governor Robert McDonnell.
    2016年,美国最高法院推翻了对前弗吉尼亚州州长罗伯特.麦克唐纳(Robert McDonnell)的有罪判决。

    McDonnell and his wife were found guilty of corruption in 2014. The government charged that McDonnell received an expensive watch and his wife was given a shopping spree, among other gifts, from the owner of a Virginia business.
    2014年麦克唐纳和他的妻子被判犯有腐败罪。美国政府指控麦克唐纳收了一块昂贵的手表,他的妻子被提供了一次疯狂购物,以及来自一家弗吉尼亚公司老板的其它礼物。

    But the U.S. Supreme Court said the jury in the McDonnell case was given a definition of official acts that went too far. The definition, it said, would make government leaders worry about scheduling needed meetings out of fear of facing criminal charges. The court said there was testimony that McDonnell set up meetings for the Virginia businessman, but none that he provided direct benefits in return for the gifts.
    但是美国最高法院称,麦克唐纳一案的陪审团被给出的对公务行为的定义过于宽泛。这种定义会让政府领导由于害怕面临刑事指控,对安排有必要的会议有所担心。美国最高法院说,有证据表明,麦克唐纳为这位弗吉尼亚商人举行了会议,但是没有给人提供直接利益来换取礼物。

    During his 2009 trial, Jefferson's lawyer Robert Trout argued that Jefferson's actions of trying to get African officials to grant business to an American company were not part of his official duties. A congressman's job, Trout said, is to vote on bills, introduce bills, and attend committee meetings.
    在2009年的审判中,杰斐逊的律师罗伯特·罗特(Robert Trout)认为,杰斐逊试图让非洲官员批准一家美国公司的业务并非他公务职责的一部分。罗特说,国会议员的职责是对议案投票、提出议案,以及参加委员会会议。

    Trout said the trial judge, T.S. Ellis III, gave the jury a definition of official acts that was too broad.
    罗特说,主审法官埃利斯三世给陪审团的公务行为的定义过于宽泛。

    Federal officials who brought the case said the guilty ruling against Jefferson should remain.
    提起这起案件的联邦法官表示,应该维持对杰斐逊的有罪判决。

    Ellis will decide what to do with Jefferson's appeal.
    埃利斯将会决定如何处理杰斐逊的上诉。

    Jefferson is serving his 13-year sentence in a prison in Louisiana. He is to be released on August 30, 2023, when he would be 76 years old.
    杰斐逊在路易斯安那州一所监狱服他13年的刑期。他将于2023年8月30日获释,届时他将年满76岁。

    I'm Bruce Alpert.
    我是布鲁斯·阿尔伯特。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利,未经授权请勿转载,违者必究!)