PG Sittenfeld pardoned: A timeline of his political career and corruption case
Former Cincinnati City Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld, who was convicted on federal bribery and extortion charges, has been pardoned by President Donald Trump.
Sittenfeld had been held in a federal prison in Ashland, Kentucky, where he was serving a 16-month sentence on federal corruption charges before he was released pending an appeal that was ultimately denied.
It was a stunning fall from grace for the popular and charismatic politician who was on track to be Cincinnati's next mayor.
Sittenfeld, 39, was sentenced to serve 16 months for bribery and attempted extortion.
PG Sittenfeld: Trump pardons former Cincinnati councilman convicted of bribery, per report
Here's how he went from City Hall to federal prison and back home:
2011: At 27, Sittenfeld is the youngest person ever to be elected to Cincinnati City Council. He, Chris Seelbach and Yvette Simpson are hailed as a new generation of leaders.
2013: Council terms are extended to four years. Sittenfeld is the No. 1 vote-getter in the field of nine.
2017: Sittenfeld is re-elected, again the top vote-getter. He would be term-limited after this term and is rumored to be eyeing a 2021 mayoral run. It's a politically tumultuous time at city politics. Unbeknownst to anyone at City Hall, the FBI has opened an investigation into how development deals were being handled, a fact that wouldn't come out until much later at trial.
2018: Sittenfeld and four other City Council members attempt to wrest power away from Mayor John Cranley, with contentious fights that often erupt during council meetings. Cranley is warring with City Manager Harry Black and wants council to fire Black. That's when five members of council, a majority of members that includes Sittenfeld, text among each other. The group issues a press release, which raises questions about whether they are illegally talking among themselves via text about city business.
April 7, 2019: The city settles a civil lawsuit for $101,000, in which Sittenfeld and the other four council members admit those text conversations violated Ohio's Open Meetings Act. All five appear in court and are chastised by Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Robert Ruehlman.
July 2020: Sittenfeld announces his mayoral run.
Nov. 19, 2020: Federal agents arrest Sittenfeld on corruption charges. Sittenfeld says he is innocent. The charges allege Sittenfeld orchestrated a scheme to funnel money from developers into a political action committee (PAC) that he controlled. According to the indictment, the developers were actually undercover FBI agents who handed Sittenfeld checks totaling $40,000 on three different occasions in 2018 and 2019. The indictment states Sittenfeld solicited the money in exchange for his support of a plan to develop the former Convention Place Mall at 435 Elm St., which Cincinnati developer and former Bengals player Chinedum Ndukwe had wanted to turn into a hotel and office complex with sports betting. Sittenfeld did not pocket the cash himself, the indictment states, but instead funneled it into the PAC.
'Teed up for the Supreme Court': Why PG Sittenfeld's case could have ended up in Washington DC
Nov. 20, 2020: Sittenfeld releases a statement on Twitter saying he is innocent and says he intends to keep working and running for mayor.
Dec. 7, 2020: Sittenfeld agrees to a suspension from his council job. Councilwoman Liz Keating is appointed to replace him.
Feb. 18, 2021: Sittenfeld drops out of the mayoral race.
June 21, 2022: Sittenfeld's trial begins in federal court in Cincinnati. It's filled with bombshell moments, including testimony that a fundraiser for former Mayor John Cranley took a bribe. Also, Ndukwe testifies that Sittenfeld would only approve a development at 435 Elm St. if he contributed to Sittenfeld's campaign. Federal prosecutors play numerous videos and recordings, many of them involving undercover FBI agents posing as developers.
July 8, 2022: Sittenfeld is convicted on the two charges. He is acquitted on four other counts, including honest services fraud. No sentencing date is set.
Aug. 15, 2022: Sittenfeld's attorneys file post-trial motions, arguing alleged juror misconduct because a juror was posting on Facebook as the trial was happening. They ask U.S. District Judge Douglas Cole, who presided over the trial, to declare a mistrial and order a forensic examination of the juror's electronic devices.
April 17, 2023: Cole denies Sittenfeld's post-trial motions.
June 12, 2023: Sentencing is set for Oct. 10. Sittenfeld's attorneys and federal prosecutors file sentencing memorandums recommending to Cole what they believe should happen.
Oct. 10, 2023: Sittenfeld is sentenced to spend 16 months in federal prison and pay a $40,000 fine. The prison term is less than federal sentencing guidelines call for. Prosecutors had requested a longer sentence, between 33 and 41 months. Still, Cole says: "We will not tolerate corrupt people." Cole orders Sittenfeld to report to Federal Correction Institution Ashland located in Ashland, Kentucky, on Dec. 1.
Nov. 29, 2023: Sittenfeld had asked the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to allow him to remain free while he appealed his sentence, but received no ruling as the Dec. 1 date approached. Cole delays Sittenfeld's report-to-prison date to Jan. 2.
Dec. 1, 2023: Sittenfeld's request to remain free while he appeals his conviction is denied by the federal appeals court.
Jan. 2, 2024: Sittenfeld reports to federal prison in Ashland, Kentucky where he was to serve his time at the prison camp.
May 9, 2024: The Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals hears oral arguments in Sittenfeld's appeals case. At the end Sittenfeld's lawyer, Yaakov Roth, asks the three-judge panel to release Sittenfeld early if they were considering overturning the conviction.
May 15, 2024: The three-judge panel releases Sittenfeld early. In a motion, the judges wrote Sittenfeld's appeal presented "a close question or one that could go either way." The panel did say, however, that it was not expressing any opinion about the ultimate outcome of the appeal. A decision will come later.
May 29, 2025: President Donald Trump issues a pardon for Sittenfeld, who was preparing to take his case to the Supreme Court.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: A timeline of PG Sittenfeld's career, conviction, pardon by Trump
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