DECEMBER 4, 2015, 11:47 AM LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2015, 6:16 PM
BY PETER J. SAMPSON
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
Sobbing as he pleaded for mercy and insisted he did nothing wrong, Joseph A. Ferriero, the once powerful leader of the Bergen County Democratic Party, was sentenced Friday to nearly three years in prison for using his political clout to profit from a kickback scheme involving government contracts.
“I understand the court has to accept the verdict,” Ferriero said, adding, “Not for a nanosecond did I think I was doing anything wrong.”
In retrospect, he said, he should have done things differently, but he insisted he never solicited bribes or accepted kickbacks.
U.S. District Judge Esther B. Salas imposed a 35-month prison term on the 58-year-old Hackensack lawyer during a two-hour hearing in federal court in Newark. She said he can self-surrender to prison authorities within 60 days.
Ferriero, who earlier this week lost a bid to set aside his conviction, is planning an appeal.
