Judge gives Stockman 10 years in prison

Former Texas Congressman Steve Stockman, a conservative whose criminal charges, trial and conviction on financial crimes have been characterized by supporters as a "Deep State" attack, has been given 10 years in prison by a federal judge.

WND reported last summer the congressman was convicted of using money from mega-donors for personal and campaign expenses.

His supporters have promised multiple appeals claiming that his campaign against the "Deep State" in Washington prompted the attack on him.

Stockman's family said in a statement he also was ordered to pay more than $1 million in restitution, to be divided among three defendants.

His sentence was announced this week in federal court.

Stockman's Defend a Patriot website said his wife, Patti, confirmed he would not plead guilty after being indicted in 2017, insisting he is innocent.

"We both know God has a purpose for even the hard times we’re going through," she said.

The charges stem from several donations to organizations he ran.

He was prosecuted by the Justice Department after the scandal erupted at the IRS regarding the agency's targeting of Christian and conservative organizations when Obama was being re-elected.

In settlement agreements with tea party groups, the IRS admitting "its treatment of the organizations was 'wrong.'" But IRS executive Lois Lerner refused to cooperate and Stockman filed a bill to arrest her.

An FBI official testified during the trial that the investigation into Stockman was begun the same time he filed the bill to arrest Lerner.

His attorney, Marlo Cadeddu, said at sentencing that the term was far beyond the average of just 13 months for people found guilty of federal public corruption.

Stockman represented the 36th congressional district just east of Houston from 2013-2015.

Stockman, his supporters claim on the website, went to Washington specifically to "do his part to 'right the ship' of the U.S. government." Like President Trump, he offended "both the establishment of his own party and those on the left."

His record indeed is one of a conservative warrior. He investigated the misdeeds of the Whitewater Development Corp., opposed Hillarycare in the '90s, stood against the Mexican bailout, pursued the impeachment of Eric Holder, blocked immigration and gun bills the left demanded, called for the arrest of Lerner, worked to eliminate automatic citizenship for "anchor babies," attacked the systematic sexual abuse of children in schools, pushed to sanction China for its abortion agenda, coordinated demands for a special investigation into Benghazi and much more.

He also was in Congress from 1995 to 1997.

The family website claims the IRS, as well as the public integrity division of the DOJ, which previously targeted tea party organizations in opposition to Obama
"retaliated with over three years' investigation into every aspect of Steve's life history, bringing their case before at least three grand juries before finally obtaining an indictment."

Then prosecutors demanded limits on what defenses could be raised, even banning the mention of Lerner's name.

"All but two of Stockman's witnesses were denied because it was deemed their testimonies would be irrelevant to the case," supporters explain.

At Stockman's conviction, supporters cited the similar case against former conservative Texas congressman Tom DeLay, whose conviction and prison sentence for election law conspiracy later was thrown out because an appeals court said the evidence wasn't there.

In court, his defense lawyers argued that the various donors involved had given Stockman broad leeway in deciding how to use the funds.