Federal judge denies former Ariz. congressman’s bid to dismiss criminal case

Judge rejects Renzi’s bid to dismiss criminal case

PHOENIX — A federal judge has dealt a blow to former U.S. Rep. Rick Renzi in a case in which he faces money laundering, insurance fraud, racketeering and other charges.

U.S. District Judge Richard Bury rejected the former three-term Republican lawmaker’s request to dismiss his case based on his claim that the government violated a constitutional clause that grants members of Congress protection for their legislative acts. The ruling was made public late Thursday afternoon.

Renzi is accused of engineering a swap of federally owned mining land to benefit himself and a former business partner, who is also charged in the case. Renzi also is accused of raiding his family insurance company’s accounts to fund an election campaign. In all, he faces 48 charges.