10-year sentence for ex-new Orleans mayor
NEW ORLEANS — Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin was sentenced Wednesday to 10 years in federal prison for corruption during the critical years of rebuilding after Hurricane Katrinadevastated the city in 2005.
A jury in February found Nagin, a Democrat, guilty on charges including bribery, wire fraud, conspiracy, money laundering and tax evasion.
Nagin, 58, stirred national controversy with his erratic behavior after Katrina breached flood walls and inundated New Orleans, killing at least 1,200 people and leaving tens of thousands homeless.
Citing Nagin’s devotion to family and his commitment to helpingNewOrleans, U.S. District Judge Helen Berrigan said a shorter prison term than that recommended under federal sentencing guidelines was warranted.
She orderedNagin to turn himself in to begin serving his sentence by Sept. 8. With good behavior, and barring any appeals, Nagin could get out of prison after about 81⁄ years.
Berrigan also ordered Nagin, who prosecutors say accepted bribes valued at over $ 500,000, to pay about $84,000 in restitution to the InternalRevenue Service.
Addressing reporters outside the courtroom, prosecutorMatthew Coman, who had sought a stiffer sentence, thanked community members who had come forward to help the prosecution build its case.
“What Ray Nagin did was sell his office,” Coman said.
Nagin, a former cable TV executive elected in 2002 and re-elected four years later, made no apologies in a brief courtroomstatement in which he thanked the judge for her professionalism.
Nagin, who has never acknowledged taking bribes, declined to comment as he left the courthouse.