Mercury News: Ex-sheriff captain sentenced to jail time in Santa Clara County concealed gun permit bribery case
SAN JOSE — A former Santa Clara County sheriff’s captain has been sentenced to 10 months in jail after he was convicted of bribery earlier this year in connection with a far-reaching corruption scandal over the agency’s issuing of concealed-gun licenses that ultimately took down the previous sheriff administration.
James Jensen is the highest-profile defendant convicted in what prosecutors characterized as a years-long pay-to-play scheme in which the sheriff’s office, under former leader Laurie Smith, traded concealed-carry weapon permits for political donations, favors and other in-kind support.
At a sentencing hearing Monday, Judge Nahal Iravani-Sani also ordered Jensen to serve two years of probation and perform 150 hours of community service with a gun-safety organization.
The judge’s sentence in many ways split the difference between the requests from Jensen’s attorneys, who sought probation only, and the district attorney’s office, which asked that Jensen be given a 16-month prison term in part to deter other public officials from engaging in similar crimes.