Carolina Journal’s Rick Henderson describes U.S. District Court Judge Terrence Boyle’s comments at yesterday’s sentencing of Ruffin Poole, the man who was so close to former Gov. Mike Easley that he was known as the ” little governor.” Boyle sentenced Poole to one year and one day in prison and assessed a $30,000 fine.
At Tuesday’s hearing, Boyle appeared dissatisfied with the resolution of the probe. When defense attorney Joseph Zeszotarski requested leniency from the court because of Poole’s “commitment to the community,” Boyle said that commitment was “a two-edged sword. … His accomplishments have a corresponding duty and trust.” When Zeszotarski mentioned that Poole did not “sit around … and feel sorry for himself” after entering his guilty plea and spent more than 500 hours volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, Boyle countered that “most folks who are awaiting sentencing are in custody” and do not have the opportunity to volunteer.
Nor did the judge spare prosecutors. Boyle asked why charges that focused on corruption and public integrity evolved into a simple failure to pay income taxes. He said that Poole appeared to have expedited four coastal real-estate deals through environmental regulatory agencies: Oyster Harbor (Brunswick County), Cannonsgate (Carteret County), Summer House (Onslow County), and Cutter Bay (Pamlico County). “It is not a secret who these other people are,” he said, mentioning “the Allens, Wilson, Campbell.”
Kudos to the judge. There should be no patience for corruption.
I can’t help but wonder what Poole is thinking about his former boss, Mike Easley, who copped a plea last November. You can read Carolina Journal’s series on Poole and Mike Easley here.
