Key Takeaways:

• Former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez's request for a new trial was denied by a federal judge.
• The judge stated that jurors were unlikely to have been affected by improperly submitted evidence.
• Menendez faces sentencing next week, with prosecutors recommending a 15-year prison sentence for his corruption conviction.

A federal judge has denied the request of former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez for a new trial following his conviction on multiple corruption charges. Judge Sidney H. Stein concluded that the evidence presented during deliberation, which had been improperly redacted, did not prejudice the jury against Menendez. The jury was not likely aware of the issues concerning the evidence, which meant the defendant's motion for a retrial was denied.

The decision solidifies Menendez's conviction on 16 counts of corruption stemming from accusations that he accepted bribes—including cash and gold—in exchange for political favors like advancing military support to Egypt. Prosecutors have recommended a substantial sentence of 15 years for Menendez, who resigned from the Senate after his conviction in July following a lengthy trial.

Menendez's defense team claimed the improperly reviewed material could have swayed the jury's decision. However, Judge Stein ruled that the defendants also held responsibility for not addressing the submission of the flawed evidence before it was presented to the jury. “The extra-record material was buried in thousands of exhibits and many thousands of pages of evidence,” the judge stated, further highlighting the defensive teams' failure to identify the errors during the preparation of the jury’s laptop.

Despite the errors identified by Reuters in applying non-redacted versions of nine exhibits during jury deliberations, Stein asserted there was little chance the material influenced the overall verdict.

As part of the legal fallout, prosecutors noted that Menendez's and others' failure to object to the evidence contributed to the denial. In his ruling, Stein emphasized that it was “extraordinarily unlikely” that jurors recognized any improper evidence submitted during the trial. Menendez now faces sentencing scheduled for January 29 and has seen his professional and financial circumstances heavily impacted by the trial and subsequent conviction.