Raymond Francis Lederer (May 19, 1938 – December 1, 2008) was a
Democratic member of the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
, representing
Pennsylvania's 3rd congressional district
Pennsylvania's third congressional district includes several areas of the city of Philadelphia, including West Philadelphia, most of Center City, and parts of North Philadelphia. It has been represented by Democrat Dwight Evans since 2019. With ...
from 1977 to 1981. He was convicted of taking bribes in the 1980
Abscam scandal.
Early life
Lederer was born in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
on May 19, 1938, where he attended the local Catholic schools, graduating from
Roman Catholic High School for Boys
, motto_translation = Faith and Knowledge
, accreditation = MSA
, nickname = The Cahillites
, conference = Philadelphia Catholic League
, colors = Purple & Gold
, yearbook ...
in 1956. He attended Saint Joseph's College of Philadelphia (now
Saint Joseph's University
Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a private Jesuit university in Philadelphia and Lower Merion, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1851 as Saint Joseph's College. Saint Joseph's is the seventh olde ...
) from 1960 to 1965, the
Community College of Philadelphia
The Community College of Philadelphia (CCP) is a public community college with campuses throughout Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The college was founded in 1965 and is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. It offers over 1 ...
from 1967 to 1969 and
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...
,
University Park, Pennsylvania
University Park (also referred to as Penn State University Park) is the name given to the Pennsylvania State University's main campus located in both State College and College Township, Pennsylvania, United States. The campus post office was de ...
, in 1972. He worked as an assistant engineer for the
Pennsylvania Department of Highways in 1957. He was a
probation officer
A probation and parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probati ...
and later served as director of the Philadelphia Probation Department, during the period from 1967 to 1974. Lederer was a board member of the Pennsylvania Committee on Probation.
[Raymond Francis Lederer]
''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
The ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress'' (Bioguide) is a biographical dictionary of all present and former members of the United States Congress and its predecessor, the Continental Congress. Also included are Delegates from ...
''. Accessed December 7, 2008.
Politics
Lederer was elected to the
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts.
It ...
, where he served from 1974 to 1977.
[ Lederer represented the same part of Philadelphia that had been served by both his father, ]Miles
The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of distance; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English ...
, and older brother, William
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
. His sister-in-law, Marie, would also go on to serve in the State House.[
]
Congress
Lederer was elected to Congress in 1976 to represent ; Lederer won with 73% of the vote, defeating Republican candidate Terence J. Schade. He took office on January 3, 1977.[ While serving on the House Ways and Means Committee, he was able to direct shipments of fruit from ]Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
to be imported through the Port of Philadelphia.[
Lederer was re-elected in 1978 with almost 72% of the vote over Republican Raymond S. Kauffman.
]
Abscam
Lederer was videotaped at a motel in New York on September 11, 1979, at a meeting with two undercover agents who presented themselves as representatives of a supposed Arab sheik. Accepting $50,000 in cash, he told the agents "I can give you me" in exchange for the money.[
After being implicated in the Abscam sting, Lederer was convicted of bribery on January 9, 1981, and sentenced to three years in prison and fined $20,000.] Despite his indictment in the scandal, Lederer was re-elected, unlike the other members of the House implicated in the Abscam scandal.[Staff]
"THE NATION; Exit Mr. Lederer"
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', May 3, 1981. Accessed December 6, 2008. In the 1980 race, Lederer won with 54.5% of the vote, defeating Republican William J. Phillips, who had 32.8%, Consumer Party candidate Max Weiner with 9.5% and Independent John Morris with 3.2%.
The United States House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct voted to expel him on April 28, 1981.[ Lederer resigned the following day, citing "personal legal problems" that interfered with his ability to serve his constituents.][ ]Joseph F. Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith Sr. (November 13, 1838 – November 19, 1918) was an American religious leader who served as the sixth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was the nephew of Joseph Smith, the founde ...
ran in the Democratic Party primary in a race to succeed Lederer in a special election. After losing in the primary to David B. Glancey, chairman of the Democratic City Committee, Smith ran in the July 1981 special election as both an Independent and as a Republican (with the approval of the Republican Party
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party.
Republican Party may also refer to:
Africa
*Republican Party (Liberia)
* Republican Part ...
) and defeated Glancey, having promised in his campaign to caucus with the Democrats if elected.[via '']United Press International
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...
''
"special election"&st=cse "NEW HOUSE MEMBERS SWORN IN "
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', July 29, 1981. Accessed December 7, 2008.
Lederer served ten months in Allenwood Federal Prison
The Federal Correctional Complex, Allenwood (FCC Allenwood) is a United States federal prison complex for male inmates in Pennsylvania. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice.
The pri ...
. He later worked as a roofer. Lederer died on December 1, 2008, of lung cancer
Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...
at age 70 and is interred at the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania
Cheltenham is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania, United States, with a ZIP code of 19012. It is located directly over the city line (Cheltenham Avenue) of Philadelphia. It also borders Northeast ...
.[via '']Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
''
"Raymond Lederer, Abscam Figure, Is Dead at 70 "
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', December 3, 2008. Accessed December 6, 2008.
See also
* List of American federal politicians convicted of crimes
This list consists of American politicians convicted of crimes either committed or prosecuted while holding office in the federal government. It includes politicians who were convicted or pleaded guilty in a court of law; and does not include p ...
* List of federal political scandals in the United States
References
External links
*
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lederer, Raymond F.
1938 births
2008 deaths
20th-century American politicians
Abscam
Burials at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery
Deaths from lung cancer in Pennsylvania
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Pennsylvania politicians convicted of crimes
Pennsylvania State University alumni
Politicians convicted of bribery under 18 U.S.C. § 201
Politicians convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States
Pennsylvania politicians convicted of corruption
Politicians convicted of illegal gratuities under 18 U.S.C. § 201
Politicians convicted under the Travel Act
Politicians from Philadelphia
Saint Joseph's University alumni
Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government