July 10 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Justice Department doesn't have to return evidence in a bribery probe that it seized during a raid on Representative William Jefferson's office, a federal judge ruled.

Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan, in a decision issued today in Washington, dismissed Jefferson's argument that the search was unlawful and that FBI agents violated his constitutional rights. Jefferson contended that the search ran afoul of the Constitution's ``speech or debate'' clause, which protects members of Congress from being prosecuted or sued for legislative acts.

``Congressman Jefferson's interpretation of the speech or debate privilege would have the effect of converting every congressional office into a taxpayer-subsidized sanctuary for crime,'' Hogan wrote in the 28-page opinion. ``Such a result is not supported by the Constitution or judicial precedent and will not be adopted here.''

Jefferson's attorney, Robert Trout, said he intends to appeal the ruling.

``While a congressman is not above the law, the executive branch also must follow the law,'' Trout said in a statement. ``We appreciate the consideration the judge accorded our motion for the return of the seized property, but we respectfully disagree with his conclusion.''

First Raid

The Federal Bureau of Investigation's May 20 search of the Louisiana Democrat's Capitol Hill office was the first time agents raided a congressional office. It escalated tensions between Congress and the Bush administration over the limits of presidential power.

Hogan's decision doesn't completely resolve the issue of the materials seized from Jefferson's office. The government took two boxes of paper records and copies of all the computer hard drives, according to court filings,

The evidence remains in the custody of Solicitor General Paul Clement at the Justice Department. President George W. Bush on May 25 ordered him to keep it under seal for 45 days.

``Our government has not faced such a dilemma in more than two centuries,'' Bush said in a statement issuing the order. ``It is clear these differences will require more time to be worked out.''

The 45-day time period ended over the weekend. Representatives from the Justice Department and Congress have been working to set up guidelines for future searches of lawmakers' offices.

`Move Forward'

``We are pleased with this decision, which allows us to move forward in this investigation using the documents that the court has concluded were lawfully obtained,'' said Brian Roehrkasse, a Justice Department spokesman.

Roehrkasse and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, said negotiations between the agency and Congress are continuing.

``The House will continue discussions with the Department of Justice to develop procedures so that any future searches of members' offices will protect the ability of the FBI to do its job and maintain the constitutional balance between the legislative and executive branches of government,'' Pelosi said in a statement.

At a court hearing last month, Hogan said he was skeptical of Jefferson's arguments, which were joined by a bipartisan group of lawmakers. The judge approved the warrant for the FBI's search of the office.

``The speech or debate clause is not a `hide and conceal' clause,'' Hogan said.

The FBI has said it videotaped Jefferson taking $100,000 from a government witness in a bribery probe, and that $90,000 of the money was found in a freezer in the congressman's Washington home. Jefferson hasn't been charged with a crime and has denied any wrongdoing.

To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Schmidt in Washington at rschmidt5@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: July 10, 2006 18:09 EDT