Former Sen. Bookout sentenced to 18 months in mail fraud case

Former State Sen. Paul Bookout of Jonesboro will report to federal prison May 2 after being sentenced to 18 months in federal prison on a mail fraud charge.

Bookout, a Democrat who once served as president pro tempore of the state Senate, appeared Wednesday (March 2) before Chief District Judge Brian Miller during a hearing at the federal courthouse in Little Rock. In addition to the prison sentence, Bookout was ordered to pay $150,048.12 in restitution and was given a two-year supervised release after finishing the prison sentence, Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Givens said late Wednesday.

Bookout pleaded guilty in March 2015 after a federal and state investigation into his campaign spending during the 2012 campaign. Bob Hester of Jonesboro filed a state ethics complaint against Bookout, questioning the spending. The Arkansas Ethics Commission voted 4-0 in July 2013 that Bookout had used $53,305.07 in campaign donation for personal use but did not keep adequate records.

Bookout attorney Bill Stanley said Wednesday that Bookout has done “all he can do” to pay back donors from the 2012 campaign.

“He will fully reimburse the donors,” Stanley said, noting the incarceration of his client may make the issue difficult.

Earlier this week, Stanley filed a motion in federal court asking for either home detention or supervised release for Bookout. On Wednesday, Stanley said he and Bookout respected Miller’s decision.

“He is ready to serve the sentence and move on with his life,” Stanley said.

The motion cited Bookout’s life and work in public service as reasons for leniency. The motion also noted that Bookout’s case was different than other recent fraud cases.

“Paul does not dispute that he spent campaign funds on himself personally. Undersigned counsel would aver that Paul’s case is significantly different than that of Martha Shoffner, who took money to steer business toward a particular company, and also different than that of Mike Maggio who took monies in exchange for reducing the amount of verdicts that juries had awarded in his court. The monies in question here were campaign donations made by his constituents during his two most recent campaign cycles, which he spent on personal expenses rather than campaign expenses. The federal offense is the result of Mr. Bookout transmitting the false campaign finance reports via electronic mail/fax to the Secretary of State for filing. There is no evidence that he, at any point during his tenure as a legislator, ever “sold a vote” for any money, favors or otherwise. Paul has been a good citizen and person in Jonesboro his entire life.”