Judge declares mistrial in DC Council member Trayon White's bribery case

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WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge declared a mistrial on Monday after a jury failed to reach a verdict in the bribery case against a Washington, D.C., Council member accused of accepting cash from an associate in exchange for using his elected position to help extend city contracts for the associate’s businesses, court records show.

Justice Department prosecutors intend to retry Trayon White, who pleaded not guilty to one count of bribery and denies breaking the law.

White's trial began on Sept. 15. Jurors began deliberating last Wednesday after hearing several days of testimony. U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras declared a mistrial after jurors indicated they couldn't reach a unanimous verdict, according to online court filings.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro noted that White was captured on video receiving “piles of cash" for what prosecutors said was part of a $156,000 bribe.

“Rest assured that we will retry this case and every corruption case to verdict,” Pirro said in a statement.

White was arrested in 2024 on a charge that he accepted bribes in exchange for pressuring D.C. employees to extend city contracts for violence intervention services. Authorities say they secretly recorded conversations between White and an FBI informant who gave White $35,000 in cash on four occasions.

Other D.C. Council members voted unanimously to oust White from the council after his arrest. But he won a special election last year to retake the Ward 8 council seat vacated by his expulsion.