Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his conviction on bribery, money laundering, and other corruption charges. Prosecutors said the actions for which he was convicted spanned his two terms as mayor—including the chaotic years after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. US District Judge Helen Berrigan handed down the sentence this morning.
Nagin was convicted Feb. 12 of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from businessmen who wanted work from the city or Nagin's support for various projects. The bribes came in the form of money, free vacation trips, and truckloads of free granite for his family business. The 58-year-old Democrat defiantly denied any wrongdoing after his 2013 indictment and during his February trial. (More Ray Nagin stories.)