Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin Found Guilty of Corruption Charges

A jury convicted former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin on 20 of his 21 counts of corruption while in office. Someone crooked running New Orleans? Oh, say it ain't so.

(No, of course, it's totally so.)

The Advocate reports that a jury deliberated for six hours across three days (they were slowed down by one juror's medical problems) to convict Nagin on charges several different charges -- but some of the worst were that he steered government contracts toward those who bribed him the best.

As the Times-Picayune explained, there wasn't a lot of doubt that vendors were giving gifts to Nagin's family -- it was more of an issue of whether those gifts constituted bribes. Vendors gave out cash to Nagin's son's business, for instance. So, under the law, is that a bribe to Nagin himself? A jury decided that yes, it was.

A federal grand jury also indicted Nagin in January 2013 for wire fraud, tax fraud, and money laundering. Of his 21 counts, he was acquitted of only one -- an alleged $10,000 bribe to the Nagin family's granite business.