Green Bay's Mayor Jim Schmitt appeared in court on December 5 on charges for accepting contributions over the legal limit and accepting corporate money.
In Brown County Court Mayor Jim Schmitt waits for judge for sentencing. pic.twitter.com/eH51zOiGHu
— Raquel Lamal (@RLamalWGBA) December 5, 2016
In court today, Mayor Schmitt plead guilty on three counts.
Mayor Schmitt with teary eyes apologizes to the court, his family and the citizens of Green Bay. Says it will never happen again.
— Raquel Lamal (@RLamalWGBA) December 5, 2016
Special prosecutor Bruce Landgraf asked the judge to issue Schmitt $4,000 in fines and 40 hours of community service.
"He chose to lie and lies are what make this a gravely serious matter," the prosecution stated.
The defense argued that Schmitt never allowed this investigation to negatively impact the city.
When Mayor Schmitt addressed the judge, he apologized saying, "Your honor I am really sorry, I am. I apologize to the court, to my family and especially to the citizens of Green Bay."
The judge found Schmitt guilty on all three counts.
"You wanted this money, you had deposited a number of checks that were over limits that you shouldn't have taken in and you tried to allocate them so you could keep that money," said Judge Mitchell Metropulos who presided over the case in Brown County Court.
The mayor pleaded guilty to all three charges that were originally felonies, reduced to misdemeanors after a plea deal was worked out.
