The Latest on the trial and sentencing of former Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard (all times local):
12:55 p.m.
Former Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard has been sentenced to four years in prison for violating the state’s ethics law.
Lee County Circuit Judge Jacob Walker handed down the sentence Friday. Hubbard faces additional time on probation.
Hubbard was convicted in June of a range of ethics violations, including improperly soliciting lobbyists and company executives for consulting contracts and investment and using his office to benefit his clients.
Prosecutors argued Hubbard betrayed the trust of voters and his fellow lawmakers and asked for a five-year prison sentence.
Hubbard was one of the state’s most powerful politicians. He led the 2010 GOP takeover of the Alabama Legislature.
Hubbard maintained his innocence during the trial and testified that he never used the power of his office for personal benefit.
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A judge will decide whether former Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard, once one of the state’s most powerful politicians, will go to prison and if so, for how long.
Hubbard is due in court Friday morning for sentencing on 12 counts of violating the state ethics law.
A jury convicted Hubbard on charges that he used his office to make money and improperly solicited lobbyists and company executives for investments and jobs.
Prosecutors want Hubbard to spend five years in a state prison and another 13 years on supervised release.
Hubbard defense lawyer Bill Baxley called the suggested sentence “ridiculously extreme.” Prosecutors argued in their sentence request that Hubbard betrayed the trust of voters and fellow lawmakers.
Prosecutors also want Hubbard to pay $1.6 million in fines and restitution.
[Source:- Tulsa World]
