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Anthony Weiner Gets 21 Months in Prison for Sexting With Teenager Anthony Weiner Gets 21 Months in Prison for Sexting With Teenager
(about 3 hours later)
Anthony D. Weiner, the disgraced former New York congressman who became caught up in a scandal over his exchange of lewd texts with a 15-year-old girl, was sentenced on Monday to 21 months in prison. Anthony D. Weiner, whose repeated sexting scandals cost him his seat in Congress, his bid to become mayor of New York City, and possibly Hillary Clinton’s chances at the presidency, was sentenced on Monday to 21 months in prison.
Mr. Weiner, 53, had pleaded guilty to one count of transferring obscene material to a minor, and had faced up to 10 years in prison. His inability to control his habit of exchanging lewd texts and pictures with women fueled his long and tortuous downfall. But it was his most recent exchanges with a 15-year-old girl that were the most personally ruinous, ending his marriage and resulting in his criminal conviction and looming imprisonment.
After the sentence was pronounced, and Judge Denise L. Cote of Federal District Court in Manhattan had left the courtroom, Mr. Weiner remained seated between his lawyers at the defense table, crying, his face in his hands. He must surrender on Nov. 6. Until now, Mr. Weiner, 53, had been the beneficiary of multiple second chances, resurrecting his political savvy and promise amid earnest vows that he had learned his lesson.
Mr. Weiner’s lawyers had asked Judge Cote for probation for their client, citing what they described as Mr. Weiner’s “remarkable progress” over the past year. In his own letter to the judge, Mr. Weiner said he felt “profound” regret for his crime, adding that his “continued acting out over years crushed the aspirations” of his wife, Huma Abedin, “and ruined our marriage.” But this time, there would be no second chance for Mr. Weiner, who pleaded guilty in May to one count of transferring obscene material to a minor, and had faced up to 10 years in prison.
Before the sentence was pronounced, Mr. Weiner did not so much ask for leniency, but tried to make a case that he had accepted responsibility for his crime, and that he was a changed man.
“I acted not only unlawfully but immorally, and if I had done the right thing, I would not be standing before you today,” he said, crying as he addressed the judge.
“The prosecutors are skeptical that I have truly changed and I don’t blame them,” he said. “I repeatedly acted in an obviously destructive way when I was caught.”
Reports of the federal investigation that led to Mr. Weiner’s being charged in the case first surfaced after the 15-year-old victim’s story was told in a DailyMail.com exposé in September 2016.
It was during that investigation that the F.B.I. discovered on Mr. Weiner’s laptop a trove of emails belonging to his wife, Huma Abedin, a senior aide to Hillary Clinton. That led to an announcement in late October by James B. Comey, then the F.B.I. director, that the bureau had opened a new inquiry into Mrs. Clinton’s handling of official email. The inquiry ended two days before the election; Mrs. Clinton has blamed Mr. Comey in part for her defeat.
Judge Denise L. Cote of Federal District Court in Manhattan told Mr. Weiner that his offense was “a serious crime that deserves serious punishment.”
She said she agreed with Mr. Weiner’s lawyers’ contention that he was finally receiving effective treatment for a disease of sexual compulsion, that he was engaging in sex addition therapy and was making what she called “an enormous contribution” to others suffering from that disease.
“But the difficulty here,” Judge Cote said, “is that this is a very strong compulsion.” It was so strong, she added, that despite “two very public disclosures and the destruction of his career on two occasions, he continued with the activity.”
After the hearing ended and Judge Cote had left the bench, Mr. Weiner remained seated between his lawyers, Arlo Devlin-Brown and Erin Monju, at the defense table, bent deeply forward in his chair, sobbing, his face in his hands. The judge also fined Mr. Weiner, who must surrender on Nov. 6, $10,000.
During the hearing, Mr. Weiner looked tense and serious, sometimes clenching his jaw. At times, he blinked rapidly, his lips pursed and his nostrils flared. He sipped from a water bottle on the table before him.
When the judge asked if he wanted to speak, he rose and began reading from a statement he had carried with him. His first words were strong and clear; by his third sentence, however, his voice began to break, and he paused often to clear his throat.
“I was a very sick man for a very long time,” he said, his voice growing higher-pitched and weaker.
“I’ve had a disease but I have no excuse,” he continued. “I accept complete and total responsibility for my crime. I was the adult.”
The lawyers had asked Judge Cote for probation for their client, citing what they described as Mr. Weiner’s “remarkable progress” over the past year. In a letter to the judge, Mr. Weiner said he felt “profound” regret for his crime, adding that his “continued acting out over years crushed the aspirations” of his wife, “and ruined our marriage.”
Federal prosecutors, in their own memo to the judge, had argued that probation was “simply inadequate” and Mr. Weiner deserved prison. The government recommended a sentence within the range of 21 to 27 months.Federal prosecutors, in their own memo to the judge, had argued that probation was “simply inadequate” and Mr. Weiner deserved prison. The government recommended a sentence within the range of 21 to 27 months.
“Although the defendant’s self-destructive path from United States congressman to felon is indisputably sad,” the prosecutors wrote, “his crime is serious and his demonstrated need for deterrence is real.” “Although the defendant’s self-destructive path from United States congressman to felon is indisputably sad,” the prosecutors, Amanda Kramer and Stephanie Lake, wrote, “his crime is serious and his demonstrated need for deterrence is real.”
Mr. Weiner’s sentencing was yet another chapter in his long and tortuous downfall. In 2011, Mr. Weiner, a Democrat who had represented parts of Queens and Brooklyn, was forced to resign from Congress after an explicit picture, posted from his Twitter account, surfaced. Joon H. Kim, the acting United States attorney in Manhattan, said after the hearing that Mr. Weiner’s sentence was “just” and “appropriate for his crime.”
On May 19, the day he pleaded guilty in the lewd texting case, Ms. Abedin, a senior aide to Hillary Clinton, filed for divorce. In a one-page letter to the judge, Ms. Abedin had asked for leniency on behalf of their son. She did not attend the sentencing. On May 19, the day Mr. Weiner pleaded guilty in the lewd texting case, Ms. Abedin filed for divorce. In a one-page letter to the judge, Ms. Abedin had asked for leniency on behalf of their son. She did not attend the sentencing.