A former Ohio Democratic congressman who lost his political career after being convicted of taking bribes and kickbacks has died. 73-year-old Jim Traficant passed away Saturday. Traficant was injured Tuesday when a vintage tractor flipped over on him as he tried to park it inside a barn on the family farm near Youngstown. His expulsion from Congress in 2002 came three months after a federal jury convicted the former Mahoning County Sheriff of using his office to extract bribes from businesspeople and coercing staffers to work on his farm and his house boat in Washington. He spent seven years in prison. Traficant graduated from Youngstown's Cardinal Mooney High School in 1959 and the University of Pittsburgh in 1963. He played quarterback for the Panthers and was drafted in the NFL's twentieth round (276th overall) by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1963. Traficant earned his master's degree from Pitt in 1973 and earned a second degree at Youngstown State University in 1976.
Traficant Passes Away
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