LITTLE ROCK — A former North Little Rock Alderman who admitted plotting to rig city bids in a scheme to pay off his gambling debts was sentenced Friday to four months in prison.
Cary Gaines must report to authorities by June 6 to begin serving his sentence, which also includes three years of supervised release after the prison term.
Prosecutors had recommended home detention and probation because Gaines cooperated and testified against two others, but U.S. District Judge Bill Wilson said he had to give a tougher sentence.
"It wouldn't be fair to the people of North Little Rock," he said of a lighter sentence.
The term still fell short of the sentencing guidelines, which are not mandatory. Those guidelines - which figure in factors like Gaines' abuse of a public position and his lack of a criminal history - resulted in a recommended range of 12 to 18 months in prison.
Gaines accepted responsibility for his actions in a brief address to Wilson, during which he expressed remorse and said the shame he feels for his actions keep him from going to stores he once frequented and spurred him to change churches. Gaines' attorney, Chuck Banks, earlier urged Wilson to follow the prosecution's recommendation because Gaines took responsibility, worked with the government and needed to take care of his elderly mother.
Banks also suggested the crime wasn't as serious as the sentencing guidelines suggested since Gaines never actually followed through on his plans and because doing so would have been difficult since the bid process was not solely up to Gaines.
But in brief remarks to the judge - and again outside the courthouse - Gaines admitted his crime.
"I did wrong," he said. "I recognize that. I'm ashamed of that. I violated the public trust. There's just no minimizing that."
Gaines pleaded guilty last December to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in U.S. District Court and later testified in the trial of Cabot bookmaker George Wylie Thompson and Sam Baggett.
Gaines was convicted of scheming to award contracts for city projects to contractors with ties to Thompson, resulting in kickbacks that would count against debts Gaines owed Thompson.
The fraud never took off, but Gaines acknowledged planning it during his Dec. 6 guilty plea.
Thompson was convicted on a range of charges, including marriage fraud, running an illegal gambling ring and possessing illegal weapons. Baggett is a former North Little Rock alderman who resigned after being found guilty of supplying guns and ammunition to Thompson.
Thompson was sentenced to 10 years in prison in an unrelated, federal cocaine trafficking case, but he and Baggett await sentencing in the cases in which Gaines testified.
Gaines, who was allowed to remain free pending sentencing, faced up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He resigned as alderman in 2009 shortly before he was indicted.