Judge (Again) Significantly Rejects DOJ's Recommendation In Sentencing Leo Winston Smith

It has become a broken-record statement by now - a judge has significantly rejected the DOJ's sentencing recommendation in an FCPA enforcement action. (See here and here for prior posts).

In September 2009, as described in the DOJ release (here), Leo Winston Smith (the former Director of Sales and Marketing for Pacific Consolidated Industries) pleaded guilty to charges related to the bribery of a U.K. Ministry of Defense official in order to obtain lucrative equipment contracts with the U.K. Royal Air Force, in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. (Smith also pleaded guilty to corruptly obstructing and impeding the due administration of the internal revenue laws.).

The DOJ sought a 37 month sentence.

In his sentencing memorandum, Smith respectfully requested a term of probation with appropriate conditions. His attorney, Edward Patrick Swan Jr. of Luce Forward (here), noted as follows. "The prison term of 37 months recommended by the government is disproportionate to most of the other FCPA cases prosecuted by the Department of Justice" and that the "great majority of the sentences imposed in similar cases, and even in cases involving much larger bribe amounts, have been generally much less than what the government is recommending in this case."

In early December 2010, U.S. District Judge Andrew Guilford (C.D. Calif) sentenced Smith to six months imprisonment, followed by six months of home confinement, and three years of supervised release. (See here).

Just as it did not issue a release in connection with the Elkin and Green sentences, the DOJ did not issue a release in connection with Smith's sentence.

Smith's co-conspirator, Martin Self (here), was sentenced to two years probation in November 2008 (see here).