ALBANY — Shawn M. Morse, an iron-fisted former firefighter who endured a scandal-plagued first term as the mayor of the city where he grew up, was sentenced to probation, 200 hours of community service and fined $3,000 by a federal judge on Wednesday, six months after admitting he stole more than $12,200 in campaign funds.

The sentencing of Morse, the former chairman of the Albany County Legislature, was the culmination of a political downfall that began more than two years ago. In November 2017 — halfway through his four-year mayoral term — uncertainty about Morse's fitness for public office arose when his wife Brenda dialed 911 and told a dispatcher that her husband had grabbed her by the neck and thrown her to the ground during an argument.

For more than a year after that incident, more allegations of domestic abuse by Morse swirled as the FBI began separately investigating his business interests and use of campaign funds. Morse has repeatedly denied the abuse allegations; in court Wednesday, his attorney William J. Dreyer noted that Brenda Morse's allegations, which were investigated by State Police, had fallen apart.

Morse's voice choked with emotion as he asked U.S. District Senior Judge Thomas J. McAvoy for a lenient sentence and apologized to his former constituents.

"I hope the people of Cohoes forgive me, because I love them unconditionally," Morse said. "I'm embarrassed to be standing here today. I sit here today sadder than I could ever imagine."

Morse's attorneys negotiated his plea last year to settle a seven-count indictment handed up by a federal grand jury in February 2019.

Morse, a Democrat, told the judge that he had devoted much of his adult life to helping the city, and that now he must go forward knowing that many will always consider him "a felon."

"I am truly sorry for what I have done, but I am a good man," Morse told the judge. "I have spent my whole adult life giving more to the city of Cohoes than I have received."

Letters in support of Morse had been sent to the court by multiple people, including former Congressman John Sweeney and Thomas Ross, the city's assistant police chief.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Hanlon, acknowledging that Morse had done "great things" in public office, asked McAvoy to sentence Morse to up to 14 months in prison. He noted that the former mayor's plea for leniency included citing his role as the primary caregiver of his 17-year-old daughter, but that it is not an uncommon circumstance for other defendants who are incarcerated for their crimes.

"The people of the city saw in him ... what they saw in themselves," Hanlon told the judge. He characterized Morse's theft of campaign funds as a "one-two punch" against the constituents who had put their faith in Morse and invested their hard-earned money in his political success for what many may have believed was the benefit of the blue-collar city.

McAvoy cited the letters of support written on Morse's behalf and, after sentencing Morse to two years on probation, remarked that the onetime influential political figure in Albany County — "an elected mayor who had betrayed the public trust" — had suffered from the publicity.

"I think, in your case, you’ve been fairly severely punished by what’s appeared in the press, and the court takes that into consideration as well," McAvoy told Morse.

The judge brushed aside Dreyer's points about Morse's domestic violence history not being validated, saying "all of us as parents have trouble with kids."

In September 2018, the Times Union, citing child protective services reports, detailed allegations that Morse had regularly used physical violence against his younger daughter, now 17, including pulling her hair, throwing her to the ground, choking her and punching her in the head. During at least one interview with investigators, Morse's daughter was accompanied by Heather Bradt, a math teacher and tutor at Cohoes High School who had mentored Morse's daughter. That interview took place March 24, 2017, at the Cohoes Public Library, according to the report.

During the interview, a CPS investigator wrote in a report that the daughter, then 15 — whose name has been withheld by the Times Union — recounted how a few days earlier her father allegedly attacked her unprovoked at the family's residence following a heated argument he had with his wife in the middle of the night, the document states.

Members of the FBI white-collar unit that built the criminal cases against Morse and his former campaign treasurer, Ralph V. Signoracci IV, sat in the rear of the courtroom during Wednesday's sentencing. The U.S. attorney's office and FBI later issued a statement announcing the outcome, but did not provide comment.

Morse, who has had brushes with police through the years, is alleged to have stolen more than $12,250 in campaign funds between 2013 and 2018. He has forfeited that money to the government, which will be in addition to paying the $3,000 fine.

Morse was arrested a year ago at his residence on an indictment that accused him of looting thousands of dollars from campaign accounts for personal expenses, including vacations, restaurant outings and home repairs. Signoracci, his former campaign treasurer and longtime political confidant, pleaded guilty to a federal wire fraud charge in March and had agreed to testify against Morse.

Signoracci admitted cashing campaign checks and giving the money to Morse, who in some instances deposited the cash into his personal checking account within 24 hours of receiving the funds. Signoracci was also sentenced to probation last fall.

Morse lost a Democratic primary last June to challenger Bill Keeler, a retired State Police major ran unopposed for mayor in November's general election.

After Morse lost the primary, Keeler called for him to step down immediately due to his pending federal criminal charges. But Morse declined to resign, even as people in City Hall said that he had rarely been in the building since the loss.

In August, hours after Morse pleaded guilty, the Common Council voted to appoint its president, Christopher Briggs, as acting mayor. Morse did not challenge the decision, which effectively removed him from office.