Former Republican Party Chairman Jim Greer was sentenced Wednesday to 18 months in prison for essentially stealing from the Republican Party.
Orange County Circuit Judge Marc Lubet who handed down the sentence noted Greer had paid back $65,000 and that it was a case where a co-defendant, informer Delmar Johnson walked away scot-free. Lubet also said, Greer had no prior convictions.
Greer was accused of siphoning off nearly $200,000 in party funds to a shell fund-raising company called Victory Strategies, keeping $125,000 for himself. Rather than face a lengthy trial, he pleaded guilty just before his trial was set to begin last month.
Greer, 50, faced the prospect of a maximum sentence of 35 years on four counts of theft and a reduced money laundering charge, although a recommended sentence, per state guidelines, was a prison term of closer to 3-and-a-half years.
In sentencing Greer to 18 months, Lubet said, “You took the hit on these five felonies and you paid the money back.”
