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3w ago

Supreme Court Declines Householder Appeal in Ohio $60 Million Bribery Case

The denial finalizes prison sentences affirmed by the 6th Circuit.

FILE - Former Republican Speaker Larry Householder speaks to the media immediately after his expulsion from the Ohio House on Wednesday, June 16, 2021, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Andrew Welsh-Huggins)
FILE - Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges participates in a question-and-answer session in Columbus, Ohio, Feb. 11, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Welsh-Huggins, File)
FILE - Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder sits at the head of a legislative session in Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 30, 2019. The convicted former Ohio House speaker was recently transferred to Oklahoma to begin his time in federal prison. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Overview

  • The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder’s appeal, leaving his racketeering conviction and 20-year sentence in place.
  • The decision keeps a unanimous 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling intact for both Householder and ex-lobbyist Matt Borges.
  • Prosecutors said Akron-based FirstEnergy routed about $60 million in secret payments to help elect allies, make Householder speaker, pass House Bill 6 as a roughly $1 billion nuclear bailout, and thwart a repeal drive.
  • Householder’s petition argued that taking donations from donors with expectations should not qualify as Hobbs Act extortion, a question the justices declined to consider.
  • Borges received a five-year sentence and is living in a Cincinnati halfway house with a Nov. 12 release date, according to Bureau of Prisons records.