Department of Justice officials sought two years of incarceration for Michael Scanlon. Scanlon sentenced to 20 months

Michael Scanlon, a business partner of disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff, was sentenced today to 20 months in federal prison for his role in the scandal that helped bring down former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas).

The prison sentence handed out by District Judge Ellen Huvelle marked the end of long fall from grace for Scanlon, a one-time DeLay aide who made enormous sums working with Abramoff, only to see it all fall apart.


During the peak period of 2001-03, Scanlon was raking in roughly $7 million per year working with Abramoff on behalf of Native American tribes, Huvelle noted before sentencing Scanlon. Scanlon then used those funds to expand into real-estate development in Delaware and elsewhere.

Friday’s sentencing also marks one of the final chapters in the long-running Abramoff saga, which first became a media and political firestorm in Feb. 2004.

Abramoff, once one of the most powerful Republican lobbyists in Washington is already out of prison after more than three-and-a-half years behind bars. He worked in a pizza restaurant in Baltimore for several months last summer and has now dropped out of sight.

Former Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio) -a key figure in the criminal conspiracy hatched by Abramoff - spent 17 months in prison before being released. Ney has tried his hand as a talk-radio host and appeared in a documentary on Abramoff. He joked on Twitter Friday that Scanlon can have his prison bunk.

DeLay is trying to stay out of jail in Texas following his conviction on a state money laundering charge. Tony Rudy, another former DeLay aide who worked with Abramoff, is tentatively scheduled to be sentenced next month, and Fraser Verrusio, an ex-staffer for Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), was convicted this week for accepting a free trip from an Abramoff associate to the 2003 World Series. Verrusio faces as long as five years in prison when he is sentenced in May.

Abramoff and Scanlon were paid more than $70 million by a number of Native-American tribes with casino operations, then worked - legally and illegally - to defend these tribes from other competitors, federal and state regulators and political opponents. Abramoff would sign the tribes up for high-priced lobbying contracts, then bring Scanlon in to work for the tribes on public relations and political campaigns. Scanlon’s fees were far higher than what Abramoff would charge for lobbying work, and Scanlon secretly funneled millions of dollars in kickbacks from those contracts to his more powerful partner.

Abramoff, Scanlon and their associates gave illegal gifts - including meals and trips - to lawmakers, Capitol Hill staffers and federal officials in a bid to expand their web of influence. Abramoff eventually pled guilty in the case, as well as a bank fraud case in Florida, and he served 43 months in federal prison before being released last summer.

Scanlon’s guilty plea in a Nov. 2005 marked a major break in the investigation for federal prosecutors, who had been chasing the pair for more than a year at that point. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to bribe public officials and honest-services fraud.

Scanlon’s attorneys had sought no prison time for Scanlon, noting his “extraordinary cooperation” in helped unravel the Abramoff case after he reached a plea deal with prosecutors. Scanlon is credited with helping Justice Department prosecutors get 20 other convictions in the Abramoff scandal, including Abramoff himself. Scanlon even aided efforts in a Texas money laundering case in which DeLay was found guilty.

“I am so sorry, so very remorseful,” Scanlon said during his appearance on Friday.

Scanlon’s lead attorney, Stephen Braga, made an emotional plea for mercy for his client, arguing that Scanlon “is a different man” that the one who engaged in a criminal conspiracy with Abramoff.

But DOJ officials sought two years of incarceration for Scanlon, arguing that the nature of his offenses warranted a prison term.

Huvelle then ruled that Scanlon - who expressed deep remorse for his actions - should serve 20 months behind bars.

“Your fraudulent activities were really quite extraordinary,” Huvelle told Scanlon. “This was an extremely lucrative scheme.” Scanlon and Abramoff pocketed more than $39 million in fees that they received from the tribes.

Scanlon owes more than $20 million in restitution as part of his plea deal with the government, although responsibility for paying that debt is split with Abramoff. Scanlon’s lawyers are engaged in a legal dispute with Abramoff’s former employer, Greenberg Traurig, over how much he owes in repayment to the firm. Greenberg Traurig paid off the tribes after the scandal broke, and is now seeking repayment from Scanlon for some of those payments.

Greenberg Traurig is also involved in a separate legal battle with the insurance companies that covered part of the law firm’s payments in the Abramoff case. The insurance companies are seeking to depose Scanlon over his formal role with Greenberg Traurig.

How the parallel legal fights play out will ultimately decide how much Scanlon is forced to shell out. He recently sold some Delaware properties, with the proceeds set aside by DOJ for possible restitution.

Scanlon now lives in Florida, and he and his wife own property on the Caribbean island of St. Barts as well.

When Huvelle asked Scanlon what he planned to do after he got out of prison, Scanlon said he didn’t know.

“It’s such a dark place,” Scanlon said. “I don’t have detailed plans.”