CHARLOTTE, NC — Ex-mayor Patrick Cannon put the city of Charlotte in the national spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
Some feel 44 months in prison is not enough. Others may argue it’s too much. But Cannon’s sentence fits the mold in North Carolina for punishing elected officials who abuse their power.
44 months behind bars and a $10,000 fine. Patrick Cannon will also forfeit more than $50,000 to pay for the investigation.
Federal judge Frank Whitney considered the punishment carefully, consulting other cases where politicians crossed the line.
“He wanted to get some more guidance, not only from the sentencing guidelines, but say, ‘What have other judges in other federal districts done with substantially similar cases and substantially similar defendants?'” says Charlotte defense attorney George Laughrun.
Former North Carolina representative Frank Ballance was sentenced to four years and fined $10,000 for conspiracy, mail fraud and money laundering in 2004.
Former North Carolina Speaker of the House Jim Black of Mecklenburg County got 63 months and a $50,000 fine in 2007 for taking cash and checks in corrupt payments from chiropractors.
Judge Whitney also cited former Mecklenburg County Elections Director Bill Culp, who was sentenced to 30 months and a $50,000 fine in 1999 for taking bribes and kickbacks while in office.
Meg Scott Phipps was North Carolina Commissioner of Agriculture. She was sentenced to 48 months and fined $25,000 for conspiracy, fraud, and extortion in 2004.
And former state representative Michael Decker got 48 months and a $50,000 fine in 2007 for taking money to switch political parties.
The average prison time for those cases, 47.4 months. The average fine, $37,000.
Patrick Cannon was released on bond after Tuesday’s sentencing. The court rejected his request to report to prison after December 30th. He will be ordered to self-report once a prison has been designated.
