5 Charges Reinstated Against Democratic Fund-Raiser Hsia

A federal appeals court reinstated five charges Tuesday against a Democratic fund-raiser accused of hiding illegal contributions to the 1996 Clinton-Gore campaign.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia reversed a lower court’s ruling that had thrown out the five false-statements charges against Maria Hsia, who steered thousands of dollars from a Hacienda Heights, Calif., Buddhist temple to the campaign.

The appeals court also affirmed the lower court’s ruling that Hsia must stand trial on another charge of conspiracy involving $65,000 in illegal contributions.

The charges allege that Hsia solicited donations and then orchestrated false filings to the Federal Election Commission. Prosecutors said the filings amount to false statements to the government because the contributors named were not the true source of the money. Hsia, who has close ties to Vice President Al Gore, pleaded not guilty.

Tuesday’s ruling could boost government prosecutors in at least two other cases alleging that Democratic fund-raisers made false statements to campaign regulators. Those cases involve former Little Rock, Ark., restaurateur Yah Lin “Charlie” Trie and Thai businesswoman Pauline Kanchanalak.