Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) is set to appear in court on Monday for his criminal trial, facing charges of accepting bribes and acting as a foreign agent for Egypt and Qatar. The trial will kick off with jury selection and is anticipated to coincide with Senate session days.
Menendez has not confirmed if he will testify in court but plans to be present throughout the proceedings. He, along with his wife and three businessmen, were indicted last fall on corruption charges related to alleged bribery from the Egyptian government. Additional charges were later added, accusing Menendez of helping the Qatari government and obstructing justice.
Four out of five defendants have pleaded not guilty, while the fifth defendant, Jose Uribe, has pled guilty and agreed to testify against Menendez as part of a plea deal. Menendez faces 15 charges, including bribery, extortion, and Foreign Agents Registration Act violations, while his wife, Nadine, faces 14 charges.
Menendez’s defense strategy may involve pointing the blame at his wife, as revealed in court filings. He has also requested to call a forensic psychiatrist to testify about his traumatic experiences, including his parents fleeing Cuba and his father’s suicide, in an attempt to explain his behavior.
The Department of Justice opposes this witness testimony, and the judge has yet to make a decision. This trial is not Menendez’s first brush with legal issues, as he was previously tried in 2017 for corruption and bribery charges, resulting in a hung jury after two and a half months of proceedings.
