A federal judge overseeing the bribery case against Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., says he won’t dismiss any of the charges against the senator, leaving it up to the jury to decide his fate.
On Monday, Judge William Walls ruled against the defense’s argument to drop the charges against the New Jersey lawmaker, claiming that they did not meet the definition of bribery under the 2016 Supreme Court decision against former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell.
The Democratic senator is facing 18 criminal counts alongside his friend and wealthy Floridian, Dr. Salomon Melgen.
“We are living in a real world of reality and common sense,” Walls explained in a lengthy opinion he read on Monday. “The jury will decide whose version of what happened or didn’t happen is more likely than not.”
Menendez’s team is expected to call their first witness to the stand late Monday afternoon.
