Ex-Treasurer Shoffner properly convicted, prosecutors say

Prosecutors say former Arkansas Treasurer Martha Shoffner was properly convicted on 14 bribery and extortion counts over payments she received from a bond broker to whom she steered state investments.

Federal prosecutors on Friday asked U.S. District Judge Leon Holmes to deny Shoffner's motion to acquit her conviction last month over the $36,000 in cash payments she received from bond broker Steele Stephens, who is not affiliated with the well-known Stephens Inc. investment firm. Shoffner's attorneys have argued prosecutors failed to prove that the former treasurer harmed the federal government.

In their filing, prosecutors said they had proven Shoffner's conduct affected interstate commerce since the bonds were purchased across state lines. They also argued that the investments included some federal grant funds.

Shoffner, a Democrat, resigned from office after she was arrested last year.

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