Oct. 3, 2005, 5:34PM

DeLay indicted on money laundering charge Associated Press

AUSTIN - A Texas grand jury today indicted U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay on a new charge of money laundering.

A different grand jury whose six-month term ended last week indicted him on a conspiracy charge, forcing DeLay to temporarily step down as House majority leader.

Both indictments accuse DeLay and two political associates of conspiring to get around a state ban on corporate campaign contributions by funneling the money through the DeLay-founded Texans for a Republican Majority Political Action Committee to the Republican National Committee in Washington. The RNC then sent back like amounts to distribute to Texas candidates in 2002, the indictment alleges.

The new charge was the first action from a new Travis County grand jury, which started its term today. Another grand jury, which ended its term Sept. 28, handed up 41 indictments in the three-year investigation.

The new indictment comes hours after DeLay’s attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the case. That motion was based on the argument that the conspiracy charge against DeLay was based on a law that wasn’t effective until 2003, the year after the alleged money transfers.

"Since the indictment charges no offense, and since you have professed not to be politically motivated in bringing this indictment, I request that you immediately agree to dismiss the indictment so that the political consequences can be reversed," attorney Dick DeGuerin wrote in a letter to Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle.

The judge that will preside in DeLay’s case is out of the country on vacation and couldn’t rule on the motion. Other state district judges declined to rule on the motion in his place, said Colleen Davis, a law clerk to Austin attorney Bill White, also represents DeLay.

George Dix, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law who is an expert in criminal law and procedure, said he doesn’t believe changes made to the Texas election code by the 2003 legislature have any effect on the conspiracy charge.

The penal code’s conspiracy charge allows for the charge if the defendants allegedly conspired to commit any felony, including an election code felony.

Just because the election code was "silent" on the penal code provision until 2003, it doesn’t mean it wasn’t a valid charge before 2003, Dix said.

"To me it just says, ’We really mean what we said implicitly before,’ " Dix said.