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Corrupt Former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver Sentenced To Prison For The Third Time
By
Sydney Pereira
Published Jul 20, 2020
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By
Sydney Pereira
Published Jul 20, 2020
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Disgraced former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison on Monday in what was his third sentencing hearing after appeals courts overturned two previous convictions for a bribery and money laundering scheme.
"Twice convicted by unanimous juries for abusing his powerful state office to enrich himself, Sheldon Silver will now finally report to prison to begin serving a sentence that can begin to repair the harm his conduct caused to the people of this District and to their trust in local government," Acting U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a statement.
Once one of New York's most powerful politicians, Silver was first convicted in 2015 on seven counts of extortion, taking bribes, and money laundering for taking $4 million in kickbacks from law firms for steering clients their way. The 76-year-old Silver also made another $1 million through laundering the money. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison for the corruption in 2016.
But the conviction was overturned in appeals court after a panel of judges determined the jury wasn't given proper instructions to determine whether the Lower East Side politician had committed corruption by conducting "official acts" as a lawmaker in exchange for financial gain.
After another trial in 2018, Silver was sentenced to seven years in prison instead, which was then partially overturned earlier this year after a panel of judges vacated convictions on mail and wire fraud and extortion. In that scheme, Silver had been convicted of awarding grants totaling $500,000 to a clinic dedicated to mesothelioma research. Prosecutors alleged that in return, the clinic had referred cancer patients with potential legal claims to a law firm that gave Silver kickbacks.
The appeals court upheld convictions in a separate real estate scheme, in which Silver referred developers to specific law firms, gaining hundreds of thousands of dollars in referral fees, and in exchange, worked to pass developer-friendly legislation surrounding tax abatement and rent stabilization programs in 2011.
On Monday, a federal judge sentenced Silver to 78 months—6.5 years—which would be followed with another two years of supervised release. He'll also be fined $1 million.
"I commend the career prosecutors and agents who have seen this case through two trials and two appeals, ensuring that Silver’s crimes did not go unpunished and proving once again that this Office and our law enforcement partners will never stop pursuing corruption, without fear or favor, at all levels of government," Strauss added.
His lawyer, James Loonam of Jones Day, did not immediately respond to an inquiry.
At the sentencing Monday, Silver remarked on how he "destroyed" his legacy as a lawmaker.
Silver was Assembly speaker for more than two decades until 2015, when he was arrested. He had been in the state legislature since 1977 representing the Lower East Side and Chinatown. He was considered one of Albany's "three men in a room," wielding enormous power over major city and state affairs alongside the governor and State Senate Majority Leader.
Before his sentencing, in a June 17th memo Silver and his defense attorneys pleaded with the judge for a "substantial term of home confinement" with a "rigorous community service requirement" as well as monetary consequences. Silver's counsel argued that he should be spared prison in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which would force Silver to face crowded conditions without adequate personal hygiene and cleaning supplies. His defense also emphasized his age and health conditions could put him at further risk of the coronavirus.
On Friday, Silver's attorney Loonam requested a video conference for the sentencing, expressing fears Silver would face risks from a gaggle of press snapping photos of him outside the court. Judge Valerie Caproni declined the request, citing temperature checks and other precautions the courts system is taking.
In a hand written letter last month, the disgraced lawmaker wrote to Judge Caproni, "Your Honor, I do not want to die in prison."
"I developed a sense of entitlement and it seemed normal," he wrote. "I think that sense of entitlement was easier to justify because I thought I was keeping the best interests of the State and my constituents at heart."
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sheldon silver
Sydney Pereira
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