DC Councilman Trayon White pleads not guilty to bribery charges

District of Columbia Councilman Trayon White pleaded not guilty to bribery charges when he appeared in court on Thursday for his arraignment.

White faces one federal indictment after video footage showed him accepting $156,000 in bribes in exchange for using his position as the chairman of the D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services to pressure two city agencies to extend contracts to a company tasked with fighting against violent crime .

White rejected a government plea deal offered to him on Aug. 22 by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Ross, and she requested that White go to trial in April. U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras declined her request, giving White's defense attorneys more time to examine the evidence in the case. White and the prosecutors will return to court on Nov. 13 — just after the election, in which White is running for his third term.

The two-term district councilman was arrested by FBI agents on Aug. 19. An unnamed business associate affiliated with one of the city's contracts addressing violence-intervention work agreed to work with the FBI in exchange for a plea deal. The business associate met with White on several occasions to accept a $35,000 bribe in exchange for putting pressure on the D.C. Department of Youth and Rehabilitation Services and the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement to renew a $5.2 million contract, according to the indictment.

Meanwhile, the D.C. Council is conducting its own investigation into the bribery accusations and White's true place of residency. Representing Ward 8, White was arrested from an upscale luxury apartment in Navy Yard where authorities say he was actually living.

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The council will deliver its findings by Dec. 16 and vote on the appropriate actions to take, which could include removing him from office.

White has not removed his name from the ballot, and while he now faces a slew of Democratic challengers as write-ins, he has strong support, with over 40 supporters who joined him in court.