Former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has been sentenced to 6-1/2 years in prison for bribery and extortion. He was also fined $1 million. As previously reported by The Jewish Voice, close to $5 million was received by Silver from estate developers and a cancer researcher in exchange for Silver using his position of influence for their gain. The funds were then laundered in private investment vehicles.

Silver was first convicted in 2015, which was affirmed in 2018. After various appeals, District Judge Valerie Caproni of Federal District Court in Manhattan rejected the appeals, calling Silver “guilty of corruption, plain and simple,” and imposed sentence.