He was well-known for being a hawk on guns. Now corrupt former California state Sen. Leland Yee will simply be known as a jailbird.
The Democrat from San Francisco was arrested two years ago as part of a federal investigation into an organized crime ring run by Raymond “Shrimp Boy” Chow. With charges ranging from drug distribution, money laundering and a plan to smuggle guns into the U.S. through Islamic terror groups, Yee faced life in prison. But an agreement allowed his legal team to enter a guilty plea for only a single felony count of racketeering.
Now, U.S. Attorney Brian Stretch is recommending a sentence of eight years in jail and three years supervised release, plus a fine of $25,000. Stretch wrote, “Yee demonstrated he was a public servant who was willing to betray the trust of those who elected him by being prepared to sell his vote to the highest bidder.”
Judge Charles Breyer will rule on Yee’s formal sentencing later this month.