Skip to main content

Margaret Hunter sentencing for campaign fund misuse delayed

Image
By

SAN DIEGO (CNS) – A judge approved a joint motion Monday to delay sentencing for nearly two more months for Margaret Hunter, who pleaded guilty along with her husband, former Rep. Duncan Hunter, to federal conspiracy charges for misusing campaign funds to support years of personal expenditures.

Margaret Hunter was slated to be sentenced next Monday, but COVID-19- related concerns led the prosecution and defense to jointly agree to postpone her sentencing until Aug. 24, “in the hope that the present public emergency will have abated” by then.

U.S. District Judge Thomas J. Whelan agreed to grant the motion.

Margaret Hunter pleaded guilty more than a year ago to using campaign credit cards on family vacations, restaurant and bar tabs, clothes and other frivolous expenses over the course of several years.

Prosecutors said the couple spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, with the former congressman falsely reporting the expenses as campaign related.

Duncan Hunter pleaded guilty about six months after his wife and was sentenced earlier this year to 11 months in federal prison.

He was slated to surrender to authorities last month, but Whelan approved a joint request to delay the surrender date to as late as Jan. 4, 2021, “due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the unknown impacts the disease will have in the coming months.”

The Hunters were charged in 2018 in a 60-count indictment.

At Duncan Hunter’s sentencing hearing, he asked Whelan for leniency and sympathy when he sentences “the mother of my children,” asking the judge not to give her time in custody “if it’s possible.”

In the prosecution’s sentencing memorandum, it states the Hunters were “virtually penniless” and amid dire financial straits, resorted to using campaign credit cards to support “a profligate lifestyle leading to continual debt and an ever-increasing need to find cash to pay bills.”

Despite the family bank account not carrying a positive balance throughout any single month between 2009 and 2017, the family lived extravagantly, racking up thousands of dollars on expensive family trips and scores of other improper personal purchases, according to the memorandum.

Prosecutors also say in court filings that Duncan Hunter gave his wife a campaign credit card even though she had no official role in the campaign, and later hired her as campaign manager amid protests from members of his staff.

from FOX 5 San Diego
Source: https://ift.tt/38ccKwd
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Virginia family gets keys to Habitat for Humanity’s first 3D-printed home in the US

By
(CNN) — One Virginia family received the keys to their new  3D-printed home  in time for Christmas. The home is Habitat for Humanity’s first 3D-printed home in the nation,  according to a Habitat news release. Janet V. Green, CEO of Habitat for Humanity Peninsula and Greater Williamsburg, told CNN it partnered with Alquist, a 3D printing company, earlier this year to begin the process. The 1,200-square-foot home has three bedrooms, two full baths and was built from concrete. The technology allowed the home to be built in just 12 hours, which saves about four weeks of construction time for a typical home. April Stringfield purchased the home through the  Habitat Homebuyer Program . She will move in with her 13-year-old son just in time for the holidays. “My son and I are so thankful,” Stringfield said in a  live feed streamed on Habitat’s Facebook  page. “I always wanted to be a homeowner. It’s like a dream come true.” To purchase the home, Stringfield logged hundreds of hours of
Post a Comment
Recent News

Lawsuit: High school football player says coaches forced him to eat pizza as punishment, violating religious beliefs

By
CANTON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio high school football player who says coaches forced him to eat a pizza covered with pepperoni grease in violation of his religious beliefs is suing his former district and the ousted coaches. The former Canton McKinley High School athlete and his parents filed a federal civil rights suit this week seeking millions of dollars in damages and alleging violations of his religious freedom and constitutional rights. The athlete says in the lawsuit that coaches were notified he doesn’t eat pork or pork residue as a member of the Hebrew Israelite religious faith, but that they ordered him to eat the pizza as punishment for missing an offseason workout — and indicated his spot on the team was at risk if he didn’t. The coaches say the player chose to remove pepperoni and eat the pizza rather than an alternative food. They weren’t aware it violated his religious beliefs, according to a  defamation case they filed  previously against the teen’s father, his attorney a
Post a Comment
Recent News

Bergeron, Pastrnak and Bruins finish off Capitals in 5 games

By
WASHINGTON (AP) — Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak dazzled on offense, Tuukka Rask was rock solid in net and the Boston Bruins are moving on to the second round of the playoffs. Bergeron scored twice at crucial times after Pastrnak’s  highlight-reel  goal, Rask made 40 saves and the Bruins eliminated the Washington Capitals in five games with a 3-1 victory Sunday night. Bergeron delivered the dagger with 7:35 left to set up a second-round showdown against either the Pittsburgh Penguins or New York Islanders. Chants of “TUUKK!” emanated from a large group of black and gold-clad Boston fans who were part of the limited-capacity sellout crowd of 5,333. Those were occasionally interrupted by “We want the Cup!” — the trophy the Bruins last won a decade ago after a 39-year title drought. They’re 12 wins away, thanks to their best players dominating in Game 5. Pastrnak made it look easy putting the puck behind his back and through his legs, assisted on Bergeron’s first goal and was par
Post a Comment
Recent News