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Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for bribery
By: Jared Clayton Brown | WOSU
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COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder was sentenced to spend 20 years in prison on Thursday for bribery.
The sentence was handed down after Householder and former Ohio Republican Party chair Matt Borges were found guilty in a corruption trial back in March.
They were accused in a $61 million pay-to-play scheme to legislation that benefited FirstEnergy.
The incident has been called the largest corruption case in Ohio’s history.
The prosecutor argued that while Householder initiated the deal, he did not act by himself, and Borges entered into the deal late with full knowledge of the details.
During the trial, a federal prosecutor argued that nearly $60 million went through a dark money group called Generation Now, which was controlled by Householder and allowed for “secret, undisclosed and unreported” money from FirstEnergy.
FirstEnergy expected a $1 billion bailout of two nuclear power plants, which were owned by a FirstEnergy subsidiary, from the passage of House Bill 6.
The prosecutor also claimed Householder personally received about $500,000 in the deal, and used the money to pay off credit card debt and make repairs to a Florida residence.
Reporter Jessie Balmert, who was inside the courtroom for the sentencing, reported the judge said Householder was, “unequivocally false” on the stand in testifying about his whereabouts during his D.C. trip and control over Generation Now and interactions with FirstEnergy executives.
The judge said he doesn’t buy that Householder was “flummoxed” about events involved in the case. The judge also referred to him as a bully.
Before sentencing was handed down, Householder was allowed to speak. He discussed his faith and family as he spoke and ended his statement without apologizing or expressing any remorse for the crime.
Borges will be sentenced on Friday for offering a bribe to a campaign operative for confidential information during the referendum campaign to repeal House Bill 6.
After he was convicted, Householder defended House Bill 6 as “good legislation,” and while he respected the jury’s decision, he did not agree with it and plans to appeal.
This is a developing story and will be updated.