Posted on 09/17/2011 9:44:33 AM PDT by csvset
RICHMOND
A federal judge Friday sentenced a former special agent with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to more than three years in prison on charges related to the theft of cigarettes, firearms and money.
The former agent, Clifford Dean Posey of Chesapeake, was given a 37-month sentence by U.S. District Court Senior Judge Robert E. Payne and ordered to pay restitution. That term is at the lower end of the sentencing guidelines for his conviction, which were calculated as 36 to 47 months.
The defense requested a sentence below that range in a court filing last month, arguing that Posey has a depressive condition that contributed to his conduct. Federal prosecutors asked for a sentence on the upper end of that scale, calling Posey's criminal acts over several years an abuse of his position that compromised law enforcement efforts.
In April, Posey pleaded guilty to five counts - wire fraud, embezzlement, possessing or receiving stolen firearms, making a false statement and money laundering - after a grand jury handed down a multi-count indictment against him.
Court records indicate Posey failed to report to authorities firearms he had taken into custody, falsified a report stating he destroyed a handgun he kept, and sold a rifle he took into custody. He also sold for personal profit tobacco products connected to cigarette trafficking investigations and made unauthorized charges on a government credit card.
That behavior, assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph W.H. Mott said in court Friday, is "inevitably corrosive on respect for the law" because violations such as Posey's can harm the public's view of law enforcement officials.
When delivering the sentence, Payne recommended Posey be assigned to a federal prison capable of providing mental-health treatment.
Posey apologized to the court, saying he dishonored himself, his family and his country.
"All I can say is I'm very sorry for my actions," said Posey, as a handful of supporters watched from the gallery.
Julian Walker, (804) 697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com
Yeah, he didn’t shoot any unarmed women. If he had, he’d be getting a promotion.
What, no alcohol?
You should see what some of the DEA boys are up to.
The entire ATF organization should be dismantled along with Jimmy Carter’s FEMA.
However, Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms would be a great convenience store chain.
It’s a shame, he was one of the better ones!
In order to be able to compete, they would need a fireplace, animal mounts, a couch and chairs, and back issues of hunting magazines.
Reading the article, again I see that “making false statements” is apparently a crime. If so, I demand my Constitutional right to equal protection under the law. Government officials should be held accountable for making false statements to the people, also.
That would probably put virtually every Democratic and many Republican politicians in the federal pen.
You brought up an interesting point. The other day there was a story about Casey Anthony having to pay restitution for her investigation because she lied to prosecutors, and the question came up as to exactly when did “lying to prosecuters” get on the books. It seems that if you have the right not to bear false witness against yourself, then lying, obfuscation, whatever you want to call it, should be fair game insofar as protecting that right. Just tossing that out there to ponder.
He only got charged with what they caught him with - not what he pissed away!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.