The U.S. Department of Justice announced Thursday it will be dropping corruption charges against former Virginia governor Bob McDonnell and his wife Maureen McDonnell.
“Today is a great day in which my family and I rejoice,” McDonnell said in a statement following the announcement.
The McDonnells were previously accused of accepting more than $175,000 in gifts and loans from Star Scientific CEO Jonnie R. Williams, Sr. in exchange for government favors promoting a dietary product, such as setting up meetings and hosting events.
In 2014, a jury convicted the former Republican governor of 11 corruption charges, and the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the convictions in a 2015 ruling. His wife was convicted on nine charges.
The Supreme Court, however, vacated Bob McDonnell’s conviction in July, arguing the Justice Department’s definition of an “official act” was too broad.
“Setting up a meeting, calling another public official or hosting an event does not, standing alone, qualify as an ‘official act,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the Court’s unanimous opinion.
By vacating the conviction, the Supreme Court allowed for the possibility of a new trial against Bob McDonnell with a narrower definition of an “official act.”
This announcement comes nearly a week after the Washington Post reported the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia wanted to pursue a new trial against McDonnell.
A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office declined to comment beyond the Justice Department’s statement.
“Today the United States moved to dismiss the charges against Robert F. McDonnell and his wife Maureen McDonnell,” the Justice Department said. “After carefully considering the Supreme Court’s recent decision and the principles of federal prosecution, we have made the decision not to pursue the case further.”
Maureen McDonnell’s attorney praised the decision.
Maureen McDonnell was originally sentenced to one year and one day in prison, although her appeal was delayed until her husband’s case was resolved.
"We thank the Department of Justice for the care with which they reviewed the case,” attorney William Burck of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan said in an email statement. “We are thrilled and thankful that Maureen can now move on with her life."
The former governor also expressed appreciation.
“Today, I express my appreciation to the US Department of Justice for applying the correct rule of law articulated by the Supreme Court, and asking for these cases to be dismissed,” McDonnell said. “I thank them for doing justice for me, my family, my friends, my Commonwealth and its servants, and for all those involved in the democratic process.”
McDonnell’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment.
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