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Mirikitani’s Former City Councilman Andy Mirikitani will have to wait until tomorrow morning to learn his future.
sentencing
postponed
His attorney will have until tomorrow
to react to last-minute briefsBy Gordon Y.K. Pang
gpang@starbulletin.comMirikitani's sentencing in federal court yesterday was postponed to allow John Edmunds, his attorney, time to respond to several last-minute briefs added to a sentencing report filed by the Probation Department.
Mirikitani was convicted by a federal jury in July of bribery, theft, extortion, wire fraud and two counts of witness tampering.
Federal prosecutors said Andy Mirikitani gave $26,533.45 in bonuses from his Council salaries to staff aides Cindy McMillan and Jonn Serikawa in return for $6,884 in kickbacks. Both former employees testified against him.
Sentencing for co-defendant Sharron Bynum Mirikitani, whom the former councilman married on Friday, was also postponed until tomorrow. She had been convicted of theft and extortion, but found not guilty of bribery.
Rulings by U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor on two motions do not bode well for Andy Mirikitani.
Gillmor ruled that the fact that Mirikitani gave knowingly false testimony on the witness stand -- including denying that he asked for kickbacks in exchange for the bonuses -- must be factored into sentencing.
Edmunds argued unsuccessfully against the ruling, noting that much of the prosecution's case relied on the word of the two former employees, both granted immunity from prosecution, vs. that of Mirikitani.
But deputy U.S. Attorney Michael Seabright said Mirikitani's denial dealt with the heart of the case. "If the jury had believed his testimony, we would not be here today."
Gillmor also ruled that the complex computation for Mirikitani's sentence also needs to include that he played "an aggravating role" in the kickback scheme by serving as organizer, leader, manager or supervisor.
Criminal defense attorneys versed in federal sentencing procedures last week told the Star-Bulletin they believe the sentence will be somewhere between two and five years.
Edmunds yesterday begged for leniency, telling Gillmor that Mirikitani's 11 years on the Council represented "an extraordinary career."
Mirikitani's conviction was "a great tragedy," Edmunds said, asking Gillmor to be mindful of "human frailty."
Seabright, however, said that any politician coming before the court would have to be granted the same courtesy under Edmunds' reasoning.
Mirikitani should instead "be compared against (all) other politicians," Seabright said.
Willie Domingo, Sharron Mirikitani's attorney, asked that his client be given probationary status so that she can serve her sentence at home.
Domingo said his client suffered a heart attack in February and now takes pills to control spasms.
The Mirikitanis were married Friday at a public beach park by the Rev. Ronald F.K. Ching, a Central Union Church minister. The marriage makes Sharron Mirikitani eligible for benefits available to Andy Mirikitani, who, on Saturday, resigned from his councilman's post.
The couple yesterday insisted that the wedding was supposed to take place in May but was delayed by her heart attack.