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William Smith enjoying life (U.S. Attorney photo)
William A. Smith, the former CFO of the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy who embezzled more than $40 million from the agency over a span of just over 11 years, is headed for a lifestyle far removed from the luxurious one he lived using the stolen funds.
A federal judge on Thursday sentenced him to 19 years in prison.
"How you spent money is appalling," U.S. District Judge Susan DeClercq told Smith on Thursday at the sentencing hearing, according to the Detroit News. "It was vulgar."
The government had asked for an 18-year sentence.
Chairman of the conservancy, Matt Cullen, who appeared in court described Smith as a snake and a phony and requested the maximum sentence of 20 years, the News reports.
Smith told the judge; "There is no excuse for what I did...My actions were wrong — plain and simple."
Prosecutors said in a 35-page sentencing memorandum filed earlier this month in U.S. District Court in Detroit:
"Smith spent the embezzled funds almost exclusively on goods and services for himself, his family, and his personal associates. Smith’s lifestyle was lavish, and his tastes extravagant. Over the course of his scheme, Smith spent enormous sums of money on basketball tickets, cruises, private jet travel, designer clothing, jewelry, and other trappings of wealth and comfort."
In a federal court filing, Smith expressed regret for what he had done.
“I want the judge to know that I am extremely remorseful and want the opportunity to work to get the victims as close to whole as possible," Smith said, according to a presentence investigation report. "I am ashamed of what I’ve done to the city and the project that I love. This behavior is something I will never repeat. My intentions are to continue working to restore the trust and respect of the community that I let down.”
The sentencing closes an ugly chapter in Detroit's history—and certainly one for the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, which had been a feel-good, benevolent nonprofit that saw the good intentions of donors wasted.
Defense attorneys Gerald Evelyn and Robert Higbee argued in court papers that the government, in its sentencing memorandum, recommended an excessive punishment and failed to acknowledge that Smith had fully cooperated with the criminal investigation and possessed notable personal strengths.
"While the government has been interested in only presenting one side of the defendant’s history, it is clear that he is more than just a person who stands convicted of two very serious crimes rooted in a breach of trust," Smith's lawyers wrote. "In order to sentence the defendant, this Court should have a complete picture of his background, including family and community activities, particularly community support."
