A Black Day for North Carolina Politics
Yesterday, former State House Speaker Jim Black was sentenced to 63 months in prison, a punishment he surely deserves for breaking the law, violating the public trust, and besmirching the reputation of the NC State House. The N&O had excellent coverage; read their lead story here.
Yesterday's sentence was handed down by a federal judge, and Black is still waiting to be sentenced by a state court judge. That sentence could add as much as 2 years to his sentence.
Black made a series of bad decisions--taking cash contributions, bribing Michael Decker, and taking what amounted to bribes himself in bathrooms in chain restaurants. It's pathetic that a man of such talent and political prowess chose to plunge into a cesspool of dirty politics. More so for the state than the man, it is a black day.
Yesterday's sentence was handed down by a federal judge, and Black is still waiting to be sentenced by a state court judge. That sentence could add as much as 2 years to his sentence.
Black made a series of bad decisions--taking cash contributions, bribing Michael Decker, and taking what amounted to bribes himself in bathrooms in chain restaurants. It's pathetic that a man of such talent and political prowess chose to plunge into a cesspool of dirty politics. More so for the state than the man, it is a black day.
posted by Mike Nelson at
10:14 AM
