First of all, I apologize for being away from this blog for the last couple weeks. A lot of legal news was made during that time, and in the coming days I'll touch on some of the highlights.

To begin with, U.S. District Judge Thomas F. Hogan ruled against Rep. Jefferson and other Congressmen who had sought to suppress evidence collected by the FBI in their raid of Jefferson's congressional office. Hogan rejected the plaintiffs' separation of powers argument.

The case is being appealed, but do not look for Hogan's ruling to be overturned. Legal experts have widely repudiated such a liberal reading of the 'speech and debate' clause that could encompass the FBI's actions in this investigation.