It's been a long time in the works with appeals all the way to the Supreme Court, but today, the trial of former Congressman William Jefferson (D-LA) begins:

Nearly four years after federal agents found $90,000 in alleged bribe money in his freezer, former congressman William Jefferson goes to trial Tuesday on charges he sought money, stock and payments to his relatives in exchange for his help in landing African business deals for U.S. companies.

The Louisiana Democrat has maintained his innocence since the FBI raided his homes in New Orleans and Washington in August 2005 and found cash an informant allegedly gave Jefferson to bribe a Nigerian official. Juror screening is to begin in Alexandria, Va., for Jefferson's trial on 16 federal charges, including bribery, conspiracy, money laundering and racketeering.

The last congressional corruption trial ended with the conviction of then-senator Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, last fall. In April, Attorney General Eric Holder asked a judge to throw out Stevens' conviction. The two top officials in the Justice Department's anti-corruption division are under investigation for their roles in the Stevens case, where prosecutors failed to turn over key evidence which could have helped the senator's defense to charges he failed to report gifts from wealthy friends.