AUSTIN BUREAU

March 10, 2011, 9:28PM

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7466870.html

AUSTIN — The judge set to preside over the trial of John Colyandro and Jim Ellis, two Tom DeLay lieutenants charged in connection with an alleged political money laundering scheme that landed the former U.S. House majority leader a three-year prison sentence, removed himself from case Thursday.

Visiting state District Judge Pat Priest, who presided over DeLay's trial last year, agreed to the defendants' request to step down from the trial during a hearing that last less than 15 minutes.

The request for his recusal was contained in a sealed motion.

Defense lawyers refused to say why they had sought Priest's recusal, and none of the participants in the case would comment after the brief hearing, citing the sealed motion.

Contact by e-mail later, Priest declined to explain his decision.

"I have made it a practice for 30-plus years not to give interviews about cases in which I am involved," the San Antonio judge said.

Hearing postponed

Another judge will have to be appointed to the case. The pretrial hearing has been postponed until May 23.

"It is unusual, but it is not unprecedented," said Steve Bickerstaff, a University of Texas law professor who has written extensively about the case and was called as a witness by the prosecution during DeLay's trial last year.

Priest was the third judge appointed to oversee DeLay's trial after two previous judges removed themselves for making political contributions.

"This is likely the longest political corruption trial in the history of the county," said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice, a political watchdog group, which filed the original complaint against DeLay's political action committee, Texas for a Republican Majority. "We initially filed our complaint in 2003 and indictments weren't filed until (2004 and) 2005, and we're still a long way from the final stroke of justice."

Ellis and Colyandro were indicted by then-Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle in 2004 on charges of money laundering, using corporate money to make campaign contributions and conspiracy. The initial conspiracy charges have been dropped.

Allegations over a check

DeLay was indicted in 2005 and convicted in 2010 of money laundering and conspiracy. He was sentenced to three years in jail and an additional 10 years of probation.

Prosecutors allege that Ellis and Colyandro played a key role in what they describe as a money laundering scheme between TRMPAC and the Republican National Committee.

They charge that Colyandro provided Ellis with the blank check he needed to draw TRMPAC funds donated by corporations. Ellis filled out the check for $190,000 and gave it to the Republican National Committee with a list of seven Texas candidates. The RNC then donated a total of $190,000 raised from individuals to those seven candidates.

Money raised from individuals can be donated to candidates for state office in Texas, while state law imposes a strict ban on donations from corporations and unions.

The victory of those candidates was part of DeLay's effort to engineer the controversial 2003 redistricting of Texas' congressional districts and a key part of DeLay's plan to build a lasting Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.