Update: According to the Birmingham Business Journal, ex-mayor of Birmingham Larry Langford was sentenced to 15 years in prison for accepting more than $200,000 in bribes:
"Former Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for his October bribery conviction by a judge in a Tuscaloosa court Friday.
...
"Federal prosecutors claimed two Langford associates gave him money, clothes and jewelry in exchange for millions of dollars of county business. The Tuscaloosa jury came back with the guilty verdict after two hours of deliberation."
Former Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford is going to be sentenced today for a bribery scandal. Langford was convicted of 60 felony counts back in October and removed from office. He is expected to be sent to federal prison for taking roughly $235,000 in bribes.
Prosecutors are requesting that the 63-year-old Langford go to prison for no less than 24 years. Their argument is that he has not shown any remorse for his actions. They are also asking that he repay $119,000 in back taxes to the IRS.
The Larry Langford saga is an interesting reflection on the American political experience. I had a younger relative who thought about going in to politics. His dream was to become rich, famous and powerful, rubbing elbows with the biggest, baddest and brightest people in the world. He wanted to hang out with billionaires and show his face on national television.
When he told me about his dream, I got worried. A lot of people start their lives in idealistic pursuits of power, and allow those dreams to put them in to situations that ultimately undermine their happiness. They end up doing things that violate their personal code of ethics and being a part of games, where the rules are normally broken. Before long, that person may end up like Larry Langford, who at one point, probably thought he was living the American dream.
I am not here to say that Larry Langford is guilty or innocent, and I refuse to say whether he is a bad or good person. Sure the courts found him guilty, but innocent people are sent to prison all the time. Also, I am not sure if Langford was an especially dirty politician or a guy who did what everyone else does and found himself on the short-end of a nasty smear campaign. In many cases, there may be several politicians breaking the law at the same time, while only the least powerful one gets exposed to the public. But again, I am not sure that this is the case for Larry Langford.
At the very least, I am sure there was a point where Langford never saw himself in this situation. He never thought he'd one day expect to spend his last years on earth in a prison cell. He went to college, studied hard, made assertive choices and became a beloved mayor of a major city. This is hardly the story you'd expect to have a sad ending.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition.
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