Former Senator Bob Menendez given (below guidelines range) sentence of 11 years in prison
As reported in this CNN piece, “[f]ormer New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez was sentenced Wednesday to 11 years in prison following his conviction on bribery and corruption charges after taking cash, a Mercedes Benz and gold bars as bribes in exchange for helping three businessmen and the Egyptian government.” Here is more:
“The public cannot be led to the belief that you can get away with bribery, fraud and betrayal,” said District Judge Sidney Stein. “I don’t know what led you to this – greed was certainly part of it,” Stein added. “But that can’t be it, I don’t think that explains everything. Hubris was part of it, I don’t know. You’ll have to try to figure that out yourself over time.”
Menendez teared up as he spoke in court. “You have before you a chastened man,” he told the judge. “Other than family, I have lost everything I ever cared about,” he added. “For someone who spent his entire life in public service, every day I’m awake is a punishment.”
But outside the court, Menendez railed against the prosecutors who brought the case and, while he didn’t publicly ask President Donald Trump for a pardon, appealed to the White House. “Only in the Southern District of New York would prosecutors allow a witness to walk away from over 10 criminal charges, including defrauding the United States government so that they can get him to lie on the stand. Welcome to the Southern District of New York, the wild west of political prosecutions,” Menendez said. “This process is political and it’s corrupted to the core,” he added. “I hope President Trump cleans up the cesspool and restores the integrity to the system.”…
Two others involved were also sentenced Wednesday. Real estate developer Fred Daibes was sentenced to seven years in prison while Wael Hana, who runs a halal certification business, received a sentence of eight years. Jose Uribe, who pleaded guilty and testified at trial against the three men, will be sentenced later this year.
Prosecutors with the US attorney’s office in Manhattan asked Stein to sentence Menendez to “at least 15 years” in prison and order him to pay millions of dollars in forfeiture and fines “to provide just punishment for this extraordinary abuse of power and betrayal of public trust.”…
The 71-year-old former lawmaker, who had adamantly maintained his innocence, submitted more than 100 letters of support, including from the former president of Cyprus, local New Jersey politicians, religious figures, and constituents. “We respectfully submit that, notwithstanding his conviction, Bob is deserving of mercy because of the penalties already imposed, his age, and the lack of a compelling need to impose a custodial sentence,” his lawyers wrote to the judge. “Until this conviction marred his reputation, his career and life has been celebrated mainly for his work on behalf of the powerless and downtrodden,” they added.
In this prior post following this convictions, I asked whether Senator Menendez was facing a “de facto life sentence.” I believe his guideline range was 20+ years, so he was certainly facing a recommended prison term than could have led to a de facto life sentence for someone aged 71. But with an actual sentence of “just” 11 years, and with various potential good time and earned time credits available, Menendez could be out before he hits 80. (And if his appeals to Prez Trump find a sympathetic ear, perhaps much sooner.)
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