Image via Wikipedia BREAKING FROM CITY NEWS SERVICE! The former mayor of Lynwood was re-sentenced today to 188 months in federal prison, one of the longest terms ever handed down in a federal political corruption case, federal prosecutors said.
Paul H. Richards II, who was originally sentenced in 2006, was convicted of a host of federal corruption charges, including "honest services" fraud, related to a scheme that defrauded residents by funneling city business, including exorbitant no-bid contracts, to a "consulting company" controlled by him and his family.
U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner today rejected the 54-year-old's bid to be released from custody.
Instead, the judge upheld most of the charges of which Richards was convicted in 2005 and imposed the same sentence he issued four years ago, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
After he was sentenced the first time, Richards took his case to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which initially affirmed his convictions and sentence.
However, in the wake of this summer's ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court limiting the scope of the"honest services" fraud statute to schemes involving kickbacks and bribery, Richards' case was sent back to Los Angeles federal court for reconsideration.
In his rulings today, Klausner held that Richards was properly found guilty of a bribery or kickback scheme to deprive Lynwood of its right to his honest services, and to cause the city losses of more than $2.5 million.
In addition to upholding the honest services fraud convictions, Klausner also held that Richards was properly convicted of mail fraud to deprive Lynwood of money or property, extortion, money laundering and making false statements to the government.
Klausner dismissed several honest services fraud counts that the government conceded were invalid in light o the high court's ruling, but those dismissals did not affect Richards' sentence.
Klausner also denied Richards' bid to be released on bond while he again asks the 9th Circuit to review his case.
In denying bond, Klausner found that Richards posed a flight risk and a danger to the community, and that he was unlikely to succeed in a second appeal, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Klausner today also re-sentenced Richards' sister, Paula Cameo Harris, to six years in prison, prosecutors said.
A third defendant in the case, Bevan Atlee Thomas, lost his motion to vacate his judgment and will continue serving a 10-year prison sentence.
1 comment:
Richards is totally involved with so many illegal activities, I am STUNNED more people in LYNWOOD isn't in JAIL with him.
Have fun in the showers, Paul...
Post a Comment