Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca has lost another bid to avoid prison time while his conviction on federal corruption charges is appealed, according to court documents.

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals determined that Baca did not show that the lower court erred in ordering the former lawman to begin serving his three-year prison term. Baca was sentenced in May for his conviction on charges of conspiracy to obstruct justice, obstruction of justice and making false statements. He is expected to serve his time in either Kern County or Oregon.

This is Baca’s second loss as he tries to stay out of prison pending the appeal of his conviction.

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In July, U.S. District Court Judge Percy Anderson issued an order to deny Baca’s motion for bond pending appeal, saying the former sheriff “has failed to raise a substantial question likely to result in reversal or new trial.”

He was set to begin his sentence of three years in federal prison that same month.

But he appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, where a three-judge panel on Tuesday denied Baca’s motion on the bond issue.

“We cannot hold that the district court clearly erred in finding that (Baca) failed to meet his burden in demonstrating that he filed this appeal for purpose other than delay,” the court said in his denial of Baca’s motion.

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Baca, who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, once led the largest department of its kind in the nation.

Baca’s attorney, Nathan Hochman, said his client will not enter prison until the issue is resolved.

“The Ninth Circuit has denied without prejudice Sheriff Baca’s bail pending appeal motion, giving him the chance to show that his bail request is not for the purpose of delay,” he said. “We intend to provide the district court with ample and compelling evidence to prove this point as expeditiously as possible.”

In the meantime, Baca remains free.

In it’s ruling Tuesday, the appeals court said Baca’s legal team could file a new application for bail in the district court.

There, the judge can either deny once again or grant Baca’s bail, keeping him out of prison, pending the appeal of the conviction.

City News Service contributed to this story.