Mary Bono Caught in Racy Photo Scandal

A shocking photograph reportedly shows congresswoman Mary Bono at a party. And another, even more racy, suggests the party may have become raunchy.

Mary Bono is the widow of Sonny Bono of Sonny & Cher fame.

The pictures surfaced Friday on radaronline.com. The woman in the photos was identified as Edra Blixseth, a wealthy real estate developer.

The shots were reportedly taken four years ago at a wild party at Porcupine Creek, her magnificent estate in Rancho Mirage, California.

The estate is on the market for $55 million, reduced from the original asking price of $75 million, and is being sold by Paris Hilton's father's real estate agency.

Is the most scandalous of the pictures real?

INSIDE EDITION asked photo expert Chuck Delaney, who says he does not think the picture accurately shows what is happening. "I would guess that this indivuidual is probably about [a few inches] from the torso behind; you can see this very hot highlight on the subject's cheek and a bit of a shadow here under the chin and along the profile that indicates that there is a distance between the two."

Mary Bono was elected to Sonny's seat in Congress in 1998 following his tragic death in a skiing accident.

A spokesman for Congresswoman Bono did not confirm or deny the photos show her, but said, "It raises the question, what kind of people push a story like this?"

Since her election, Mary Bono has become an influential republican powerbroker in Washington. But her personal life has been turbulent and sometimes tragic.  

In 2001 she married a wealthy clothing manufacturer, but they divorced just four years later. In 2007 she married Florida congressman Connie Mack.

Now, just three days into the 112th Congress, she's at the center of a lurid scandal.