New judge picked for DeLay's conspiracy trial

The judge is a Democrat from San Antonio.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- A new judge was selected to preside over Rep. Tom DeLay's conspiracy and money laundering trial Thursday, after another judge became the second to step away from involvement in the case because of political contributions he has made.
Administrative Judge B.B. Schraub, a Republican who was to have selected the judge for the case, withdrew after Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle filed a request to have him removed. Two days earlier, District Judge Bob Perkins was removed from the case at DeLay's request because of his contributions to Democrats.
Schraub asked Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson to name a judge to preside over DeLay's trial. Jefferson selected semi-retired Senior Judge Pat Priest of San Antonio, a Democrat.
Earle, however, filed a motion requesting Jefferson be removed from the case moments after Jefferson's office distributed a letter naming Priest to the job. The validity of Priest's assignment by Jefferson was not immediately clear.
Campaign treasurer
State documents examined by The Associated Press show that Jefferson's 2002 campaign treasurer, Bill Ceverha, also was the treasurer of DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority Political Action Committee. The PAC is a codefendant in DeLay's case. Ceverha was a defendant this spring in a civil trial brought by Democrats who lost state legislative races to Republicans in 2002.
Jefferson also was elected to his seat with the help of a $25,000 donation from the Republican National State Elections Committee, a group at the heart of the money laundering charge against DeLay. And he received $2,000 from a DeLay-run PAC whose executive director is a co-defendant.
Lawyers on both sides in DeLay's case have argued that political contributions by judges have harmed at least the appearance of impartiality. But in a state where judges are elected and free to contribute to candidates and political parties, it could be a challenge to find a judge who meets both sides' definition of impartial.
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