The U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up the case of former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. This clears the way for a re-trial, which is scheduled to begin in April.
The court released its decision on Tuesday, saying it opposed Silver’s request because it would delay the retrial.
Silver, a Democrat, was sentenced to 12 years in prison after his conviction on public corruption charges in late 2015. But last year, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned that conviction.
The Appeals Court said the trial judge would need to instruct jurors on the law to conform with a 2016 Supreme Court decision. That decision reversed the public corruption conviction of former Virginia Republican Governor Bob McDonnell. The 2nd Circuit also said there was sufficient evidence for a retrial.
Along with the leader of the state Senate and the governor, Sheldon Silver was one of the "three men in a room" who negotiated the state budget and important legislation behind closed doors.
