NEW HAVEN, Conn. (Reuters) - Former Connecticut Gov. John Rowland pleaded guilty on Thursday to federal corruption charges that will almost certainly send him to jail for accepting perks from state contractors.
Once a rising star in the Republican Party who was considered as a vice presidential running mate for President Bush in 2000, Rowland pleaded guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to deprive the state of his honest services.
The charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but under a plea deal with prosecutors Rowland may only face 15 to 21 months behind bars. A judge will decide the sentence.
"It's been a very difficult year," Rowland, 47, said outside federal court in New Haven, where he entered the guilty plea. "This plea agreement is in the best interest of my family and the state. Obviously mistakes have been made in the last few years and I accept responsibility for those."
Federal prosecutors last year accused Rowland of accepting free renovations to his vacation cottage as well as charter flights and vacations from a state contractor, and of defrauding the Internal Revenue Service by not paying taxes on the free services.
Rowland, who became the state's youngest governor in 1995 and was elected to a third term in 2002, insisted for months he had paid for the renovations himself as investigators subpoenaed reams of documents and fellow Republicans turned against him.
Late in 2003, however, he admitted to accepting the free work. He resigned in June.
He was replaced by Gov. Jodi Rell, a former running mate, who called the plea "the sad ending to a tragic chapter" in the state's history.
Rowland's former chief of staff, Lawrence Alibozek, already pleaded guilty to charges he accepted cash and gold in return for steering state business to certain contractors. The gold was found buried in his back yard.
Source: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle....OCRBAE0CFEY?type=domesticNews&storyID=7174233
Uh-hu.
Once a rising star in the Republican Party who was considered as a vice presidential running mate for President Bush in 2000, Rowland pleaded guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to deprive the state of his honest services.
The charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but under a plea deal with prosecutors Rowland may only face 15 to 21 months behind bars. A judge will decide the sentence.
"It's been a very difficult year," Rowland, 47, said outside federal court in New Haven, where he entered the guilty plea. "This plea agreement is in the best interest of my family and the state. Obviously mistakes have been made in the last few years and I accept responsibility for those."
Federal prosecutors last year accused Rowland of accepting free renovations to his vacation cottage as well as charter flights and vacations from a state contractor, and of defrauding the Internal Revenue Service by not paying taxes on the free services.
Rowland, who became the state's youngest governor in 1995 and was elected to a third term in 2002, insisted for months he had paid for the renovations himself as investigators subpoenaed reams of documents and fellow Republicans turned against him.
Late in 2003, however, he admitted to accepting the free work. He resigned in June.
He was replaced by Gov. Jodi Rell, a former running mate, who called the plea "the sad ending to a tragic chapter" in the state's history.
Rowland's former chief of staff, Lawrence Alibozek, already pleaded guilty to charges he accepted cash and gold in return for steering state business to certain contractors. The gold was found buried in his back yard.
Source: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle....OCRBAE0CFEY?type=domesticNews&storyID=7174233
Uh-hu.
