Ex-South Congaree police chief Amodio to be sentenced Wednesday
Former South Congaree police chief Jason Amodio is due to appear at 10 am Wednesday before U.S. Judge Joseph Anderson to learn what his sentence is for perjury.
He still faces a separate state charge of misconduct in office.
Amodio pleaded guilty March 12 to perjury, which is a felony, but federal prosecutors have filed notice that they are asking the judge for a “downward departure” from the prison sentence Amodio might normally be eligible for.
The leniency is sought because Amodio has cooperated with authorities, prosecutors said in court filings.
Prosecutors are recommending Amodio receive eight months’ house arrest with electronic monitoring as well as four years’ probation.
Amodio lied about his acceptance of a questionable $9,000 payment from a Lexington County lawyer for referring a client to the lawyer following a traffic accident. A check for that amount was paid to Amodio through an intermediary.
One of the questions surrounding the case is whether Judge Anderson will require prosecutors to reveal the name of the lawyer who paid Amodio $9,000.
A legal ethics expert has said the lawyer might have run afoul of state laws concerning legal fees. Lawyers can potentially be subject to sanctions, including disbarment, if they kick back part of a fee to someone who referred a client to them.
“To the extent it is a prearranged plan, it’s a payoff and it’s improper,” John Freeman, USC law ethics professor emeritus, said when interviewed earlier this year.
In March, assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Richardson told Anderson that the traffic case concerned a 2011 crash that resulted in the death of one family member and injured another but did not otherwise give specifics of the wreck.
The crash presumably took place in the South Congaree area, where Amodio was chief. South Congaree is a town in Lexington
As part of Thursday’s plea deal, Amodio also agreed to plead guilty to the charge of misconduct in office in state court at a later time. That charge of misconduct is related to Amodio’s taking money from former Lexington Town Councilman Danny Frazier in connection with providing him with illegal, confiscated gaming devices, according to court records.
“That is part of our plea agreement, too,” Richardson told Anderson in March.
By pleading guilty to the federal charge, Amodio avoids being exposed to a maximum five-year prison sentence and $250,000 fine.
The charges against Amodio came during a joint federal-state public corruption probe that has produced charges so far against four other Lexington County residents, former Sheriff James Metts, a former Lexington Town Councilman, a Midlands restaurateur and a former Richland County deputy-turned-online-gaming-businessman.
This story was originally published July 14, 2015 at 11:57 AM.