Pennsylvania senator Fumo, once Turnpike crony gets 55 months jail

Convicted on all 137 counts of corruption and thievery in a US Court ex-senator Vincent Fumo was today sentenced to 55 months in jail and ordered to make $2m in restitution and pay $411k in fines. Fumo, 66,  who was for years a dominant figure in the state senate stole an estimated $3.5m from the state and from non-profits he ran. He used senate monies and the Turnpike to support cronies and live high and was on trial along with the wife of the Turnpike chairman at the time.

US attorney Michael Levy said after the sentencing the 55 months was "a disappointment" and "not appropriate for the crimes that were committed."

The prosecutors had argued for at least 15 years jail.

Philadelphia Inquirer editorialized: "To the bitter end, the ever-controlling Fumo worked to game the system. More than 250 of Fumo’s cronies and enablers wrote the judge begging for leniency. The list of Fumo apologists — which includes Gov Rendell and US Rep Bob Brady — reads like a Who’s Who of the Democratic Party machine that has run the city for the last half-century."

The Judge said he was impressed by those who had spoken for Fumo and said he reduced the sentence for what he called Fumo's "public service."

TOLLROADSnews 2009-07-14