Former Del. Phil Hamilton was led into a federal courtroom in handcuffs this afternoon after surrendering to the FBI in Newport News earlier in the day to face charges of bribery and extortion.

Hamilton entered no plea at his initial appearance, but was ordered to post a $25,000 unsecured bond to remain free until his preliminary hearing, which was scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 13, at the federal court in Richmond before Judge Henry Hudson. The hearing lasted about nine minutes.

Hamilton was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday for soliciting a job at Old Dominion University at the same time that he was working on the school's behalf to secure state funding for the new teacher training center. ODU opened the center after receiving $500,000 from the state. Hamilton wrote the budget amendment that provided the funding, part of which paid the $40,000 salary he received for the part-time job.

Hamilton has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in his dealings with ODU.

If he is convicted on the two charges, Hamilton could be sentenced to up to 30 years in prison. The federal government also wants Hamilton to return the $80,000 he received during the time he worked for the center. On Thursday, Hamilton was ordered to turn in his passport and told not to travel outside of Virginia, except for a trip to West Virginia this weekend to help his stepdaughter move.

Hamilton's attorney, Andrew Sacks of Norfolk, described the former lawmaker as "a man of principle, incorruptible, and passionate about doing the right thing for his constituents." Sacks said Hamilton is innocent of all charges and that federal officials "misinterpreted and mischaracterized" the details in the case.

"No official from Old Dominion University paid any bribe to Phil and Phil received no bribe from any official at Old Dominion University. This simply did not happen, and we are confident that Old Dominion University denies this as well," Sacks wrote.

Details of Hamilton's arrangement with Old Dominion first made waves in the summer of 2009 when internal emails between Hamilton and members of the school's education department revealed that Hamilton had been lobbying for the job and even discussing his salary needs. At the time, Hamilton, an influential budget negotiator with tremendous sway over billions in state spending, was pushing for $1 million for the teaching center that would eventually hire him.

Initially defiant about his intentions, Hamilton eventually relented and apologized for "the appearance of impropriety." He returned the campaign trail but lost to political newcomer Del. Robin Abbott in November 2009 and resigned his House seat weeks later, abruptly ending an ethics inquiry into the Old Dominion affair.

Hamilton faded from the public eye after the election loss until Wednesday evening when federal officials released a 12-page indictment detailing Hamilton's effort to get state funding for the school, get the job at the helm of the new teaching training center and hide the effort from fellow state lawmakers.

It's unclear exactly when Hamilton will face a judge in Norfolk because the former lawmakers is turning himself into authorities, but the trial promises to draw plenty of scrutiny because of Hamilton's once lofty perch within state halls of power.

Hamilton, 58, faces one count of "federal program bribery" because the education funding that was directed to the Old Dominion Center for Teacher Quality and Educational Leadership included at least $10,000 in federal money.

According to the indictment, Hamilton received $80,000 in two years working at Old Dominion. The relationship ended in the summer of 2009 amid a swirl of media attention.

A federal grand jury indicted former Newport News Republican Del. Phillip Hamilton Wednesday on charges of bribery and extortion for his efforts to secure a $40,000-a-year job at an Old Dominion University teacher-training center at the same time that he was working to obtain $1 million in...

The one-time powerful lawmaker from Newport News was convicted on federal charges of bribery and extortion for his attempts to secure a job with Old Dominion University while simultaneously working to secure state funding for the position.

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