Sheldon Silver, NY power broker sent to prison, dead at 77

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) » Former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, one of the most powerful figures in state government for two decades before his conviction on corruption charges, has died in federal custody at a medical center in Massachusetts on Monday. He was 77.

Silver’s supporters had said he was in failing health from multiple medical conditions. Silver, who once told a judge he prayed he would not die in prison, had been serving a six-year sentence for using his clout in state government to benefit real estate developers, who rewarded Silver by referring lucrative business to his law firm.