All the attention at the D.C. Council Tuesday was on Council member Trayon White, as he faced a hearing on whether or not he will be expelled from the council after being charged with a federal count of bribery.
White heard evidence against him, and had chance to defend himself.
“White may be represented by a person of his choice, whether or not the person is an attorney, and may have that representative speak or question witnesses on his behalf,” according to council documents.
Fred Cooke – an attorney who sat next to and spoke for White during the hearing said the process to expel his cient was rushed and defective. Cooke said that no lawmaker should be expelled before being convicted of a crime, reported WTOP’s Nick Iannelli who was at the hearing.
White was arrested by the FBI last August and charged with bribery, accused of accepting cash in exchange for using his position as a council member to influence city government contracts.
Prosecutors said White accepted $35,000 in cash and thought he would be getting tens of thousands more for agreeing to ask officials at the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services and the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement to extend violence-intervention contracts.
White allegedly made the deal with the head of two companies that had contracts with the District.
The head of the companies had been working as an FBI informant after pleading guilty in a separate case to fraud and bribery, according to prosecutors.
White pleaded not guilty, and his jury trial was scheduled for January of 2026.
A vote on whether to expel White is expected to happen one week after Tuesday’s hearing, on Feb. 4. If 11 of the 13 council members vote to expel, then he would be immediately kicked off the council.
There would need to be a special election held in the near future to replace White if he is expelled, but, theoretically, White could actually run in that election to try to get his seat back.
“Under existing D.C. law, there’s no legal prohibition on a member of the council who had been expelled for whatever reason, preventing them from running as a candidate in a special election for the very seat that they had just been expelled from,” said Zach Israel, a former ANC commissioner and an expert on D.C. law.
If White were to be convicted of a felony as a result of his court case, however, he would be expelled for good, as people convicted of a felony are disqualified from serving on the council.
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