Upon thorough investigations and hearing of his case, Tyrone Freeman was eventually found guilty. In his ruling, the Federal Judge Collins found Freeman guilty of 14 counts involving embezzlement, theft of assets, filling of wrong tax personal return, mail fraud and misleading a federally insured financial institution. Because of this, he was given a 33-month-jail term and fined a total of $150,000 that he misappropriated from the union and used to fund his relatives’ businesses and spent in Hawaii during his lavish wedding with his Executive Assistant (now wife).
During the sentence, Freeman, as a defendant, got an opportunity to participate. Immediately before the actual ruling, he plead for leniency when he said, “May God have mercy on me. I am accountable for these bad decisions” (SEIU, 2013). Despite his conviction, Freeman, as an American citizen, was free to appeal. However, his appeal would be made at the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. He would have to contest the weaknesses of the evidence presented by the prosecutor for all the allegations lodged against him. This would make the judges to vacate all or some of the 14 charges he was found guilty of committing.
In my opinion, I agree with the ruling. It was very fair for Freeman to be made accountable for his actions. He had to repay the money he misappropriated and be jailed. However, if I were a judge presiding in this case, I would subject him to a longer jail term-over three years. He deserves it because he stole from some of the poorest laborers in USA. This would act as an example to several union officials who take advantage of their union members to rip them off their hard earned finances.
References
SEIU (On Feb 1, 2013) Guilty! SEIU President Tyrone Freeman Convicted for Embezzlement. SEIU Monitor.
Retrieved From:
http://seiumonitor.com/scandals/guilty-seiu-president-tyrone-freeman-convicted-for-embezzlement/
On March, 09/2014.
