Jacksonville, FL — Former Northeast Florida Congresswoman Corrine Brown has again been denied a delay in her sentencing hearing on 18 federal fraud-related charges.
Brown's first motion was turned down last week because of a lack of specificity. She claimed that damage from Hurricane Irma was inhibiting her ability to mount a defense, but didn't detail how.
FULL COVERAGE: The trial of former Democratic Congresswoman Corrine Brown
This week, Brown's attorney filed a second motion for a continuance, with new claims and added detail. The motion said Irma damaged papers that were important for Brown showing her past history of charitable work, and that her home was being mitigated as a result of damage and she needed more time to oversee that. Additionally, the motion said Brown was still undergoing evaluation for medical, mental, and emotional conditions- and the result of those evaluations could also impact the sentence she receives.
Prosecutors objected to any further delay, saying it was Brown's responsibility to get those evaluations done, and she makes no explanation for why that hasn't happened or what she's doing to make it happen. Additionally, the government says Brown missed the court's deadline for filing objections to her Probation Officer's Presentence Report, and didn't notify prosecutors when those objections were ultimately filed.
In his ruling denying this second motion to continue sentencing, US District Judge Timothy Corrigan says Brown has now raised additional issues beyond what was addressed in her first motion, but they are issues that can be addressed during the sentencing, instead of before. He further says he has reviewed medical records provided by Brown- which are sealed- and that nothing in them shows a reson to postpone sentencing.
If Brown shows during the hearing that there are documents or information she was not able to obtain, Corrigan says he will consider allowing more time, once those arguments are made.
The hearing is scheduled for November 16th at 10 AM. WOKV will be there to provide continuing coverage.
The defense is seeking probation for Brown’s 18 fraud related convictions. The defense has indicated that Brown’s Probation Officer recommended she serve a “significant” prison time, although the exact recommendation is not public at this time.
Brown was convicted of soliciting hundreds of thousands of dollars to a sham charity and using the money on personal expenses and lavish events instead. She was also found guilty of overstating her charitable donations and underreporting her income on both tax and financial disclosure forms. Brown claimed through the trial that she mismanaged her personal finances and office, but didn't intentionally engage in criminal acts.
She has previously moved for a new trial or outright acquittal, but those efforts were denied as well.
The co-defendants in this case- Brown's Chief of Staff Ronnie Simmons and the President of "One Door" Carla Wiley- have their sentencing hearings the day before Brown, November 15th. Both pleaded guilty ahead of trial and testified against Brown.
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