Rep. Jefferson surfaces in another case

NEW ORLEANS, July 10 (UPI) -- Lawyers for a Louisiana state legislator said Thursday that U.S. Rep. William Jefferson, D-La., is named as an unindicted co-conspirator in his case.

The congressman and his sister, New Orleans Assessor Betty Jefferson, face criminal charges in separate cases. But neither is charged with state Sen. Derrick Shepherd.

John Reed, one of Shepherd's lawyers, told reporters after a hearing Thursday that the Jeffersons are the "Public Official A" and "Public Official B" in the indictment charging Shepherd with conspiracy, The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported. Shepherd is charged with conspiring with unlicensed bond broker Gwen Moyo to get access to funds that the state Insurance Department had frozen.

Shepherd denies any wrongdoing, saying that he did legitimate legal work for Moyo. At Thursday's hearing, his lawyers moved to for a separate trial, arguing that Moyo could hurt Shepherd by her insistence on acting as her own lawyer.