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Date: 07-10-2019
Case Style:
United States of America v. Jeremy Hutchinson
Case Number: 6:19-cr-03048-BCW
Judge: David P. Rush
Court: United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri (Greene County)
Plaintiff's Attorney: Steven M. Mohlhenrich, Marco A. Palmieri, Sean F. Mulryne, Ben Wulff, Aaron Jennen Stephanie Mazzanti and Patrick Harris
Defendant's Attorney: Nancy R. Price and Timothy Oliver Dudley
Description:
Springfield, MO - Former Arkansas State Senator Pleads Guilty to Bribery
A former Arkansas state senator pleaded guilty in federal court to accepting multiple bribes in connection with a multi-district investigation spanning the Western District of Missouri and Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas.
Jeremy Hutchinson, 45, of Little Rock, Arkansas, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to one count of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery. Hutchinson, who was previously a state senator and representative, resigned in August 2018 after he was indicted in the Eastern District of Arkansas.
Hutchinson pleaded guilty to his role in a multi-million-dollar public corruption scheme that involved embezzlement, bribes and illegal campaign contributions for elected public officials. Hutchinson admitted that he was hired by then-Chief Operating Officer Bontiea Goss as outside counsel for Preferred Family Healthcare, Inc. (formerly known as Alternative Opportunities, Inc.), and in exchange for payments and legal work, Hutchinson performed official acts on behalf of the Springfield, Missouri-based healthcare charity, including holding up agency budgets and drafting and voting on legislation. Goss, a former executive at the charity, is charged in the same superseding indictment to which Hutchinson pleaded guilty.
According to the plea agreement, the charity paid Hutchinson a monthly retainer from May 2014 until 2017. In total, Hutchinson was paid more than $350,000 in charity funds. Hutchinson also received hotel rooms and Major League Baseball tickets paid for by the charity, and the use of the charity’s luxury and recreational real estate.
Hutchinson further admitted as part of his plea that: he understood that he was paid by Alternative Opportunities, Inc., and Preferred Family Healthcare, Inc., primarily because of his position as an elected public official; that he worked to further the interests of the non-profit while in the Arkansas State Legislature; that Goss, along with Milton Russell Cranford (also known as “Rusty”) and Robin Raveendran, both of whom served as executives for the charity and have also pleaded guilty for their role in the bribery scheme, directed Hutchinson to move the charity’s political agenda forward in the Arkansas Senate; and that Hutchinson performed some legal work for the charity to conceal his corrupt arrangement with the charity’s executives.
Under federal statutes, Hutchinson is subject to a sentence of up to five years in federal prison without parole and a fine of up to $250,000. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
Hutchinson previously pleaded guilty on June 25, 2019, to bribery and tax fraud as part of a multi-district plea agreement. Hutchinson pleaded guilty to an information filed in the Western District of Arkansas, charging him with conspiracy to commit federal program bribery as part of a separate scheme involving an unidentified individual who owned and operated orthodontic clinics throughout the state of Arkansas, for whom Hutchinson had taken official action in exchange for bribes. He also pleaded guilty to one count of filing a false tax return that was part of a 12-count federal indictment in the Eastern District of Arkansas, charging him with devising a wire and tax fraud scheme in which Hutchinson stole and misappropriated thousands of dollars in state campaign contributions for his own personal use, and then filed false federal income tax returns to conceal his conduct.
The multi-district investigation was conducted by IRS-Criminal Investigation, the FBI, and the Offices of the Inspectors General from the Departments of Justice, Labor, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
Charges:
CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD THE UNITED STATES
(1)
CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD THE UNITED STATES
(1s)
BRIBERY INVOLVING FEDERAL PROGRAMS
(2-4)
BRIBERY INVOLVING FEDERAL PROGRAMS
(2s-4s)
BRIBERY INVOLVING FEDERAL PROGRAMS
(8)
BRIBERY INVOLVING FEDERAL PROGRAMS
(8s)
FRAUD BY WIRE, RADIO, OR TELEVISION
(13-17)
FRAUD BY WIRE, RADIO, OR TELEVISION
(13s-17s)
FRAUD BY WIRE, RADIO, OR TELEVISION
(19-20)
FRAUD BY WIRE, RADIO, OR TELEVISION
(19s-20s)
Outcome: 07/08/2019 55 Minute Entry for proceedings held before Magistrate Judge David P. Rush: ARRAIGNMENT on Superseding Indictment as to Jeremy Young Hutchinson (3) Count 1,1s,2-4,2s-4s,8,8s,13-17,13s-17s,19-20,19s-20s held on 7/8/2019. CHANGE OF PLEA HEARING to Count One and Forfeiture Allegation as to Jeremy Young Hutchinson held on 7/8/2019. Court will enter a report and recommendation. Time in court: 9:27 a.m. to 9:42 a.m. To order a transcript of this hearing please contact Karla Berziel, 417-865-3869. DEFENDANT ON BOND. (Berziel, Karla) (Entered: 07/08/2019)
07/08/2019 56 NOTICE Regarding Entry of a Plea of Guilty as to Jeremy Young Hutchinson (3). (Berziel, Karla) (Entered: 07/08/2019)
07/08/2019 57 REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS on Plea of Guilty as to Jeremy Young Hutchinson. Objections to R&R due by 7/22/2019 unless otherwise directed by the court.(Berziel, Karla) (Entered: 07/08/2019)
07/08/2019 58 PLEA AGREEMENT as to Jeremy Young Hutchinson (Mohlhenrich, Steven) (Entered: 07/08/2019)
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: