Scott Jenkins, a former Virginia judge who had been convicted of corruption, was given a whole pardon by President Donald Trump on Monday.
In December, Jenkins, the former deputy of Culpeper County in Northern Virginia, was found guilty of accepting more than$ 75, 000 in bribes in exchange for appointment as an auxiliary deputy sheriff. He was set to record to jail on Tuesday after receiving a 10-year prison sentence in March.
Jenkins was found guilty of one count of conspiracy, four works of honest service mail and wire fraud, and seven counts of corruption in connection with programs that received public money.
Prosecutors claimed that Jenkins accepted bribes in the form of donations from a number of people, including two undercover FBI agents, and that he had offered them police badges and credentials despite not having been trained or vetted.
In a news release following the sentencing, acting United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee stated that” Scott Jenkins violated his oath of office and the faith the citizens of Culpeper County placed in him.” The Department of Justice will hold our elected law enforcement officials accountable when they violate their higher standards of conduct, according to the Department of Justice.
Under the Biden administration, Jenkins was a victim of a “weaponized” Justice Department, according to Trump.
Trump wrote on Truth Social,” This Sheriff is a victim of an overzealous Biden Department of Justice, and he doesn’t deserve to spend a single day in jail.” He was a wonderful person who was executed by the Radical Left as “monsters” and “left for dead.”
Three of the men involved had already admitted guilt prior to Jenkins ‘ sentencing their role in the bribery scheme.
Jenkins served as the sheriff of Culpeper County for more than ten years. Due to the legal drama, he lost his bid to win reelection in 2023.
DEMOCRATIC ATTORNEYS GENERAL EMERGE IS THE ONE REAL RESISTANCE AGAINST TRUMP 2.0.
Jenkins received his pardon after making a clemency request to Trump. According to NBC News Washington, the former sheriff claimed in a webinar last month that he did not have the funds to appeal his conviction and that Trump would pardon him if he knew the details of the case.
I truly believe in the president, and I truly believe in him if I could have an hour with someone in the administration and explain some facts to my attorney, and I really believe in the other side if they could hear the facts I couldn’t give to the jury. I think he would have helped if he had the information, even though I don’t know what he’s talking about.
