Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Lee Householder was given the maximum prison sentence possible by U.S. District Judge Timothy Black on Thursday.
Cleveland.com noted that he was convicted of running the largest bribery scheme in the state’s history.
Black called Householder a “bully with a lust for power.” He continued: “The court and the community’s patience for Mr. Householder has passed.”
The former speaker had been accused of leading an effort to take $60 million from FirstEnergy Corp, which funded his political operations on a campaign to pass legislation that would give a $1 billion bailout to the company and pay off any of his personal financial debt. It was ultimately passed in 2019 after he became speaker.
The Cleveland.com report noted that Householder “testified in his own defense in the trial, a move that legal experts said backfired after prosecutors shredded his testimony on cross-examination.”
Federal prosecutors told the judge that they were seeking 16-20 years in prison while Householder’s lawyers asked for 12 to 18 months.
Householder’s attorneys have already said they will appeal March’s guilty verdict.
