A former Aurora police officer left a courtroom in handcuffs Monday after a judge sentenced him to 18 months in jail with work release for stealing tens of thousands of dollars from two nonprofits that help law enforcement families.

Roland Albert also will serve five years of probation and have to pay back with interest the more than $65,000 he stole from the Aurora Police Orphans Fund and Brotherhood for the Fallen Aurora. If he fails to meet the terms of his probation — which includes the jail sentence — he will then serve four years in prison.

The sentence was less severe than prosecutors hoped, but more than the probation sentence that Albert’s defense attorney argued for. Even Albert’s son, Caleb, said after the hearing that the sentence was too lenient. Caleb Albert is studying to be a police officer and said that his father’s crime was embarrassing.

“I don’t think he deserved probation, hard to say it, even though he’s my dad,” he said.

Albert pleaded guilty in October to felony theft and prosecutors said Monday that he stole about $57,000 from the orphan fund and $7,700 from the Brotherhood of the Fallen while serving as treasurer for both groups. Although the brotherhood organization recuperated about $4,000 from Albert, the orphan fund has not recuperated any of the stolen money.

Investigators with the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office were able to confirm that he sent the money to himself in part because he used his driver’s license number or last four digits of his social security number during the transactions, according to his arrest affidavit. On at least one, he labeled the transaction “FOR ROLAND T ALBERT.” He resigned from the Aurora Police Department in December 2018 while the investigation was ongoing.

Attorneys from both sides reflected Monday on the role of law enforcement in their arguments before sentencing: Should a police officer be held to a higher standard than the average person or the same as everyone else?

The sentencing came at a time when Aurora police are dealing with repercussions from another officer who may have broken the law when driving drunk, but faced no criminal investigation. The city’s leaders are also considering creating a new civilian oversight system for the department.

“With great authority comes great responsibility and accountability,” said Aurora police Sgt. Brandon Samuels, who has served on the board of the orphan fund for a decade.

Leaders of the two organizations told Arapahoe County District Court Judge Ben Leutwyler that the theft caused the charities to lose money, supporters and community trust.

“He sullied the name of law enforcement across the country,” said Sgt. Tim Jeffery, a founder of the local Brotherhood for the Fallen chapter.

But Albert’s defense attorney, Neil Silver, told the judge that his client shouldn’t be held to a higher standard just because of his employment. Silver also said that Albert suffered from mental health problems stemming from the 2012 Aurora theater shooting. Albert was one of the first officers on scene and never sought treatment for the trauma he accumulated there and eventually launched Albert’s life into a downward spiral that culminated with the theft, Silver said.

“He has nothing,” Silver said. “He’s lost all of your respect. He lost his own respect. He’s sleeping in his car.”

But prosecutors rebuffed the argument that the theft stemmed from trauma from the shooting. Dozens of other officers who responded that night have not committed any crimes, said Senior Deputy District Attorney Steve Fauver.

“Our community holds our police to a higher standard,” Fauver said before asking the judge to impost the maximum sentence.

Albert did not mention the shooting in the statement he gave the judge before sentencing. He apologized for stealing and said he hoped to be forgiven someday.

“I’m now looked at as an embarrassment, a thief and a crook,” he said.

Before delivering his sentence, Leutwyler said that he had ordered only probation in some similar cases, but that this case was different because Albert was an officer.

“You have no doubt violated a trust that was given to you because of your position,” the judge said.