Former mayor of New Orleans Ray Nagin saw his political career to the top as the man who had led his city from the devastation that Hurricane Katrina has left and descent as a man who had taken advantage of his city's rehabilitation for personal gains. This week, Nagin would be saying goodbye to his once illustrious career as U.S. District Judge Helen Berrigan told a packed courtroom that the politician is sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for his role in a bribery and conspiracy scheme worth half a million dollars.
Berrigan told the court that Nagin's sentence was already shorter than the required minimum sentence of over 15.5 years in prison, as the defendant has been given leniency for him being a good mayor at times, a devoted family man, and that she would not think he would be pursuing a career in public office again, the Wall Street Journal reported. The judge had then released Nagin on bond and required the former mayor to report to a federal prison on September 8 in Oakdale. Aside from the prison sentence, Nagin is also ordered to pay $84,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.
In February, Nagin has already been convicted by a federal jury of 20 counts including bribery, conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering and filing false tax returns. Prosecutors have accused the mayor of trading city business for personal gifts like favors, trips and cash. Several members of his administration and contractors have already pleaded guilty or have been convicted in what seemed to be the biggest public corruption scandal in New Orleans, WSJ said.
With his voice cracking, Nagin said in court after the sentencing, "I trust God is going to work all this out."
WSJ said the prosecution and some of the city residents had not approved of the short sentence handed out to Nagin. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Coman said at the sentencing that Nagin's punishment should have been much stiffer. 41 year-old employee Donald Scherer of Tulane University said Nagin's sentencing was a rip-off.
