The nine-term Democrat was found guilty Thursday of all 10 federal charges he faced, including taking kickbacks from staff and bribes and gifts from businessmen he was lobbying for. The jury also ordered him to forfeit $96,000 in ill-gotten gains from a pattern of racketeering activity spanning more than a decade.

"I have no plans to resign," Traficant said in a news release issued today. "I will not allow the government to get rid of Jim Traficant without a fight."

Traficant said his appeal would be based on "misconduct and mishandling of the case" by the judge.

The charges against Traficant carry a maximum penalty of 63 years in jail, though under federal sentencing guidelines, he is likely to get a much lighter sentence. Most legal analysts expect Traficant to get a sentence of fewer than 20 years, though it is up to the judge to calculate the gravity of his crimes.

He also could face an additional $2 million in fines for the non-racketeering charges in the indictment.

Traficant said Thursday he will not resign, despite a call by House Democratic Leader Richard A. Gephardt for him to do so. He insulted Gephardt while being questioned by reporters outside the courthouse.

"I still have some rights as an American," Traficant said. "I've never been a quitter. I'm not going to quit now."

Traficant hasn't made any formal moves to run for again. He missed the deadline for joining the Democratic primary in the newly drawn 17th congressional district that includes his home base of Youngstown, and said he plans to run as an independent.

He has until May 6 to file papers making him a candidate.

He could still return to Washington while awaiting sentencing, but House rules require that anyone convicted of a felony refrain from voting on legislation.

Traficant also could be expelled from the House by his colleagues, something that has happened only once since the Civil War. The House ethics committee said it will consider discipline, which includes expulsion, censure, reprimand or fines.

"At the heart of all public service is personal integrity. A member of Congress who breaks the law betrays the public trust and brings discredit to the House of Representatives," Gephardt said.

"I didn't ask him to resign as a result of him being an impotent minority leader and for having screwed up the party," Traficant said Friday.

The jury concluded that several Youngstown businessmen provided free work on the congressman's houseboat and horse farm, and Traficant, in exchange, lobbied state and federal regulators on their behalf.

They also found him guilty of requiring some staff members to pay him a portion of their salaries and others to work at his farm on government time.

Traficant represented himself, though he is not an attorney, and often was chastised by the judge for not following procedure. Throughout the 10-week trial, he shouted at witnesses, government attorneys and the judge.

Traficant contended the government came after him because he beat the FBI in a racketeering case 19 years ago, when he was a Mahoning County sheriff accused of taking mob money.

He was elected the next year to the House, where he quickly became known for his unruly hair, loud wardrobe and tempestuous floor speeches in which he railed against federal agencies, from the Justice Department to the IRS. The rants often ended with an exasperated "Beam me up!"

Traficant indicated Thursday he would act as his own attornedy in any appeal. During the trial, he repeatedly raised objections that he said were "for the record" -- that is, he did not expect the judge to rule, but was preserving his rights for an appeal.

Traficant remained free on $50,000 bond.

By Traficant's own admission, the trial was no "walk in the park." His examinations of witnesses were random and frequently self-destructive.

Juror Jill Kibler, 30, of Euclid, said, "I feel some of his witnesses actually helped the prosecution."

Jurors deliberated for about 23 hours over four days on the charges. After the guilty verdicts were read, U.S. District Judge Lesley Wells sent them back to deliberate for another hour on how much Traficant should pay for the racketeering charge.

Jury forewoman Helen Knipp, 63, of Mansfield, said it appeared that Traficant, "felt he was a congressman and was above it all. He was trying to confuse us. He didn't succeed."

Fellow juror Jeri Zimmerman, 40, of Mentor, said Traficant made a mistake in defending himself.

"You can only get by so much with personality. We're not ignorant people," Zimmerman said.

William Binning, a professor of political science at Youngstown State University, said "we have more questions than we have answers," about Traficant's political future.

Democrats will vote to expel him as revenge for Traficant's vote to make Republican Dennis Hastert of Illinois the speaker of the House, Binning predicted. "The question is, are the Republicans going to protect him?"

In addition, Binning said, while Traficant's "better days are behind him politically," it is not impossible that he could win re-election in the new congressional district, which still draws heavily from Traficant's home base in the Mahoning Valley.

"You could draw a scenario where he would win," Binning said. "It would give the do-gooders and the Chamber of Commerce nightmares if he was on that ballot because he could win, even though it's unlikely."