By Jill Colvin
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
CITY HALL — Harlem Rep. Charles Rangel will stand before the House ethics committee and make a last-minute plea at his sanctions hearing Thursday, DNAinfo has learned.
The committee will be meeting at noon to hear recommendations for appropriate punishment after Rangel was found guilty Tuesday on 11 counts of ethics violations.
Rangel will have 30 minutes to make his case, according to House rules.
Rangel shocked viewers when he walked out of Monday's proceedings, claiming he needed more time to prepare his defense.
"How can anyone have confidence in the decision of the Ethics Subcommittee when I was deprived of due process rights, right to counsel and was not even in the room?" Rangel said in a statement following the verdict.
Originally Rangel was charged with 13 ethics violations, which included soliciting donations from organizations with business before the Ways and Means Committee — which he had chaired — for the creation of a public service center at City College to be named in his honor, improperly using a rent-controlled apartment as a campaign headquarters, and failing to disclose personal income.
The eight-member bipartisan subcommittee was deadlocked on count 3, "Conduct in Violation of the House Gift Rule," which covered contributions to the Rangel Center at CCNY.
Count 5, a violation involving misuse of official stationary, was rolled into Count 4, which also dealt with postal laws. Rangel was convicted on that count.
