Posted on 01/21/2008 9:43:48 PM PST by NormsRevenge
SAN DIEGO – Federal probation officials are recommending that Brent Wilkes, the Poway defense contractor who was convicted of bribing former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham, should be sentenced to 60 years in prison, according to court records.
Wilkes was scheduled to be sentenced next Monday, but that has been postponed until Feb. 19 at the request of his lawyer, Mark Geragos. In court papers, Geragos said he needed more time to analyze and challenge the report from the federal probation office, which he received Jan. 15 – later than required under court rules.
Such a lengthy sentence recommendation, even in an era of increasingly stiff penalties for white collar crimes, is significant, said Shaun Martin, a law professor at the University of San Diego School of Law.
“I'm sure Wilkes' lawyers' jaws dropped to the floor when they read 60 years,” he said. “It's a huge number. Bribing public officials is worse than stealing from shareholders. Both are terrible, but one is worse.”
A jury convicted Wilkes of 13 counts of bribery, conspiracy and wire fraud Nov. 5. Over the course of nearly a decade, prosecutors said he plied Cunningham with cash bribes of at least $625,000, lavish meals, trips and gifts.
In exchange, Cunningham used his influence to steer millions in federal contracts to Wilkes' company, ADCS Inc. of Poway.
Cunningham, a former Republican representative from Rancho Santa Fe, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and tax evasion and is serving a prison sentence of eight years and four months.
The specific reasons behind the probation recommendation are not known, because the reports are not publicly available. However, in a court filing last week, Geragos referred to sections of the report and his objections to them.
Federal sentencing guidelines set out the rules under which defendants are punished, and weigh a complicated set of factors including the nature and extent of the crimes committed and someone's criminal history. The guidelines are advisory, and judges have discretion on the extent to which they follow them.
Geragos quoted probation officials as acknowledging the recommendation amounted to “essentially a life sentence” for Wilkes, 53. He said the report recommended increasing his sentence based on the amount of profit that ADCS Inc. received over a nine-year period Wilkes dealt with Cunningham.
The lawyer said he would challenge that calculation. In an interview he said probation officials appeared to have totaled up all the federal work ADCS got from the government and attributed all of it to criminal behavior.
He said ADCS did many projects that had nothing to do with Cunningham and were legitimate. “Anyone who sat through the trial knows that is true,” he said.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip Halpern told jurors that ADCS got at least $90 million in federal contracts from 1997 to 2004. Prosecutors will submit their own sentencing papers later, and it is unlikely they would urge Burns to levy a significantly shorter sentence than probation has recommended, Martin said.
Geragos also said in the court filing that probation officials said Wilkes' sentence should be increased because he was an organizer or leader of a criminal enterprise. In all, he said the analysis ended up quadrupling what would otherwise have been the base level under the guidelines for determining the sentence.
Prosecutors could not be reached for comment Monday because of the federal holiday. In court papers they did not object to rescheduling the sentencing date.
In a related matter, the judge set a Feb. 4 hearing for a change of plea for John Michael. He is a New York mortgage broker who was indicted with Wilkes on obstruction of justice and other charges. The order did not say what Michael will be pleading guilty to, and his lawyer declined to comment.
Feds want 60-year sentence for Wilkes Ping
compared to what most legislators get away with
Mark Geragos! Maximum Mark!
Whoah!!!!
This guy is lower than low (IMO), but even *I* think that is a bit much.
25 years should be adequate. ;-)
Nope, 8 years & 3 months MAX.
Who is worse, the one offering it, or the one accepting it??
Duke got whacked, but not hard enough...but he's still worse than this guy.
This guy had no position of public trust, Duke did, and that should be a great distinction.
I agree , whos worse ?
...and fitting they got Geragos, that guy couldn’t defend his french fries
Don’t forget, Wilkes was also offering bribes (e.g luxurious vacations, job promises, etc) to other-than-Cunningham and receiving national security secrets to get contracts. (Next up for a cell: Dusty Foggo)
I’ll stick with the 25 years.
Duke should have gotten 15+.
Outrageous.
Also, Why do people hire Geragos? Seriously.
great point.........the law says mano y mano but in the public’s trust is more
Feds call for 60-year sentence for Wilkes (defense contractor bribed Randy “Duke” Cunningham)....
and sandy burglar gets a $10,000 fine and community service!!!!
They get less time in California...
Anybody who needs any further evidence that the American "justice" system is seriously deranged is just not looking hard enough.
“compared to what most legislators get away with”
Or any politician.
In comparison, The Clintons should get a 6000 year sentence.
I’d say 15 - 20 years.. 60 does seem a little steep,
we’ll see. The Chinese spies get better deals.. what’s up with that?
Heck, there’s plenty more of him in the sea anyway, on to the next one..
I contend that crooks like Wilkes and Ken Lay can ruin more lives and be even more destructive than the violent thug that whacks his victim on the head and steals their purse... or robs someone in their home at gun-point.
Well, I wasn’t talking of someone breaking campaign laws.
Wilkes crimes went way beyond that.
I don't worry about a guy like this the way I do about violent criminals that are out there murdering, raping, and assaulting innocent victims..
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