Scruggs Gets 5 Years in Prison; Judge Calls Conduct “Reprehensible”

[WSJ_law_blog]

We have a bit more on Dickie Scruggs’s sentencing hearing — where he was ordered this morning to serve five years and pay a $250,000 fine for his role in a judicial-bribery scheme.

The AP reports that U.S. District Judge Neal Biggers Jr. called Scruggs’s conduct “reprehensible.” “Scruggs appeared to nearly faint as the federal judge scolded him for his conduct. Some people in the courtroom gasped as Scruggs started to sway side to side and his attorney grabbed his arm to steady him. He had to be seated before the sentence was read,” the AP reports.

“I could not be more ashamed where I am today, mixed up in a judicial bribery scheme,” Scruggs told the judge.

Scruggs must report to prison by Aug. 4 and pay the fine in one lump sum within 30 days.

The famed plaintiffs pleaded guilty in March to conspiring to bribe Mississippi judge Henry Lackey in a fee-dispute with other lawyers concerning proceeds from litigation related to Hurricane Katrina. Five years was the maximum sentence Scruggs could have received. He had argued for a lesser sentence, in the 2 1/2-year range.