Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin was found guilty on several charges of bribery and fraud in February.
Nagin made a name for himself when he renamed New Orleans “Chocolate City.”
Today Ray Nagin was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Nagin is a Democrat.
The New York Times reported:
C. Ray Nagin, the former mayor of New Orleans, was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Wednesday on federal corruption charges.
The sentence was less than the recommended 15 years, but Judge Ginger Berrigan of United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana told the court that the evidence failed to show that Mr. Nagin had organized or had been a leader of a corruption scheme.
“Mr. Nagin claimed a much, much smaller share of the profits of the crime than any other member of the group,” Judge Berrigan said, referring to the businessmen who profited from the scheme. The judge said that Mr. Nagin’s leadership was much needed after Hurricane Katrina but that it had also been lagging.
Prosecutors objected to the sentence, a move that could set up an appeal.
Mr. Nagin, who will remain out on bond, hugged family and friends after the sentencing, and was quickly driven away from the courtroom. “I’m trusting God is going to work all this out,” he said during sentencing.