The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas has moved for 10 counts of mail fraud filed against former treasurer Martha Shoffner to be dismissed ahead of a trial that had been scheduled to begin next year.
Shoffner earlier this year was found guilty of 14 counts of extortion and bribery and was set to face trial on 10 additional counts of mail fraud in February. Earlier this month, Shoffner tried to plead guilty to a single count of mail fraud in exchange for the dismissal of the others, but a judge did not accept the agreement.
Shoffner in that hearing acknowledged improperly using campaign contributions, but said she did not solicit the money intending to misuse it. U.S. District Judge J. Leon Holmes said acknowledging that would be required for her to admit guilt and instead scheduled her trial.
On Tuesday, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas Christopher Thyer and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jana Harris filed a motion seeking to dismiss all 10 counts of mail fraud. In a reference to the plea deal that fell apart, the motion said the government "anticipated an alternative resolution to the remaining counts that would conserve resources and promote judicial economy, but that resolution was not achieved."
In a news release, Thyer noted a conviction on the mail fraud counts would have "minimal, if any, impact" on her overall sentence.
“What Ms. Shoffner did was wrong on many levels—not the least of which was the breach of the trust placed in her by the electorate," he said. "However, at this time, it is best to move forward with sentencing on the bribery and extortion convictions, and we anticipate presenting evidence related to the mail fraud at that time."
A sentencing date for the 14 convictions for bribery and extortion hasn't been set.
See tomorrow's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for more on this story.
