Anthony Weiner Sentenced To 21 Months In Prison For Sexting With Teenager

Anthony Weiner, 53, has gotten caught up in yet another sex scandal, and this time he is being sent to prison.

ANTHONY WEINER SENTENCED TO 21 MONTHS IN PRISON

The former New York congressman was had been exchanging lewd text messages with a 15-year-old girl, and has been sentenced to 21 months in prison for the act.  Weiner has been caught up in sexting scandals since 2011, as well as other sex scandals before that, but he has always been granted second and third chances. This time Weiner pleaded guilty in May, and accepted responsibility.

“I acted not only unlawfully but immorally, and if I had done the right thing, I would not be standing before you today,” he told the judge, his eyes full of tears. “The prosecutors are skeptical that I have truly changed and I don’t blame them. I repeatedly acted in an obviously destructive way when I was caught.”

Reports of the federal investigation into Weiner’s acts came after the Daily Mail did an exposé on the 15-year-old in 2016. This led them to come across emails on his laptop between his wife, Huma Abdein, a senior aide to Hillary Clinton and Clinton herself. This led to the inquiry from then-FBI Director James Comey, that ultimately hurt Clinton’s chances in the 2016 presidential election. Abedin filed for divorce on May 19, the day Weiner pleaded guilty in the case. She did, however, request leniency from the judge on behalf of their son.

Judge Denise L. Cote who oversaw Weiner’s trial has agreed with his lawyers that Weiner is finally getting the help he needs for his sexual compulsion disease. “But the difficulty here is that this is a very strong compulsion.” So strong, she added, that despite “two very public disclosures and the destruction of his career on two occasions, he continued with the activity.” The judge handed down her sentence, and also fined Weiner $10,000.

Judge Cote gave Weiner a chance to speak, and he admitted his faults. “I was a very sick man for a very long time,” he said. “I’ve had a disease but I have no excuse. I accept complete and total responsibility for my crime. I was the adult… I stand before you because I victimized a young person who deserved better,” he said, adding, “Your Honor, I’m not asking that you trust that my recovery is real. I ask you for the opportunity to prove that it is real.”

While Weiner’s lawyers tried to get Weiner off with just stints of probation, the federal prosecutors felt probation was no where near enough of a punishment. “Although the defendant’s self-destructive path from United States congressman to felon is indisputably sad,” prosecutors Amanda Kramer and Stephanie Lake wrote, “his crime is serious and his demonstrated need for deterrence is real.”