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CLEVELANDURBANNEWS.COM, AKRON, Ohio –Former Cleveland Ward 4 Councilman Kenneth Johnson, 75, who was convicted of corruption and tax charges by a federal jury in Akron, Ohio on  July 30, was sentenced on Oct 8 before U.S.  District Court Judge John Adams.

Adams sentenced Johnson to six years and ordered him to pay restitution of some 740,000.

Prosecutors had urged the judge to hand the former councilman a ten- year sentence coupled with an order that he pay back $750,000 for stealing $200,000 from the city's coffers and the federal government.

Johnson apologized and told the Judge that while he had made some mistakes that he did not "purposely break the law."

In turn, the judge admonished Johnson, saying his case was not about mistakes but about "criminal conduct."

Some Black leaders and community activists, speaking on condition of anonymity, had complained over the ten-year sentence prosecutors were asking for a 75-year-old Black man, saying it was too harsh, and would allegedly be racist.

Johnson's four-year city council term was set to expire on Dec 31 and though he was suspended from office on April 20 by a three-judge panel of retired judges appointed by Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor and replaced with current councilwoman Marion Anita Gardner , who did not seek election to the seat this year, he, by law, is still receiving his $88, 000 a year salary.

In spite of his convictions, Johnson remained on the ballot for the primary election but came in fourth place. Precinct committee woman Deborah Gray came in first followed by Eric Walker in second place, and they will square off for the upcoming Nov 2 general election.

Johnson was convicted following a two two-week trial before U.S. District Court Judge John Adams, whom prosecutors wrote to and demanded the ten year sentence and restitution at three quarters of a million dollars.

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Johnson's former executive assistant, Garnell Jamison, 63, was sentenced after Johnson and prosecutors were seeking seven years in prison for him.  Jamison was also convicted on July 30, and on all 11 charges listed in his indictment, including conspiracy to commit theft from a federal program, tax evasion, tampering with a witness and falsifying records.

Both men are Black and both are  free on bond.

After deliberating for four hours, the largely White jury found Johnson guilty of two counts of conspiracy to commit theft from a governmental program, five counts of tax violations, six counts of theft from a federal program, and separate counts of tampering with a witness and falsifying records.

Both men are appealing the jury verdict in their cases. Johnson's attorney, Myron Watson, saying the discrepancies were mere honest mistakes, and Jamison's  attorney, David Doughten, basically saying the same thing.

Prosecutors want the judge to order their assets liquidated to pay the hefty fines demanded from the men.

A 15-count indictment against the former councilman was unsealed earlier this year in district court and centered on his monthly expense account relative to city monies he got for his east side ward and federal monies earmarked for the non-profit Buckeye- Shaker Square communities he serves. He was arrested thereafter.

According to the indictment, Johnson demanded the maximum amount of $1,200 monthly for his ward from the city's coffers but could not prove how much of the money, which has allegedly been requested for several years, including in 2019, has been spent.

Prosecutors called a host of witnesses during the closely watched  trial, including Johnson's adopted son, practically all of those who took the stand testifying that Johnson was shady, some saying he had them sign documents for money for work they never performed  and blatantly put monies in his bank account in an arbitrary fashion.

Prosecutors also said at trial that John Hopkins, 57,  the one-time director of the Buckeye-Shaker Square Development Corp who was also indicted and has since pleaded guilty to theft and conspiracy from a federal program, assisted Johnson in steering at least $100,000 to his adopted sons for work that did not perform regarding a landscaping project relative to the nonprofit.

Megan Miller, an assistant U.S. attorney, told jurors during closing arguments Thursday that Johnson is just simply a crook who took advantage of his constituents and utilized other crooks to secure undue monies on the city's dime.

Johnson’s former friend, Robert Fitzpatrick,  a 35-year former city employee, was  also among those indicted and pleaded guilty to conspiracy involving fraudulent expense reports the councilman filed with the city.

Both Hopkins and Fitzpatrick, once Johnson's ally, testified against the former councilman at trial.

Prosecutors accused Johnson of illegally adjusting his gross income on tax forms to attempt to justify the theft

Also at issue was what prosecutors said was Johnson's mishandling of federal and state monies regarding the Kenneth Johnson Recreation Center on Woodland Avenue, which is named after the former councilman, and is one of several city recreation centers that Fitzpatrick oversaw.

Johnson took the stand and testified on his behalf in an attempt to rebut the damaging testimony brought forth by the prosecution and said he was shocked and hurt that those who were once close to him turned on him.

Johnson's supporters say the prosecution was politically motivated by Republicans and a series of allegedly racist articles by former Plain Dealer columnist and Cleveland.com reporter Mark Naymik, and that "White council persons do the same thing but are not indicted."

Others say Johnson has misused his office for years and that the verdict fits the crimes.

Naymik left Cleveland.com in 2019 and took a reporting  job with WKYC Channel 3 News in Cleveland.

Ward 4 encompasses the Buckeye area near Shaker Square along the Shaker Heights border, and the Woodland Hills and Mount Pleasant neighborhoods.

Cleveland Mayor Jackson, a four-term Black mayor who is not seeking reelection this year and a Johnson ally, has not commented on Johnson's indictment, or his convictions on 15 counts,  though Council President Kevin Kelley has been critical of Johnson of his former colleague after reporters questioned him on why he overlooked Johnson's criminal activity for so many years .

Mayor Jackson and all of the city council, nearly half of its members Black, are Democrats.

Jackson is the city's third Black mayor. The offices of mayor and city council are all up for grabs this year