Petraeus sentenced to 2 years’ probation for military leak
CHARLOTTE - The Associated Press
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Former CIA Director David Petraeus, whose career was destroyed by an extramarital affair with his biographer, was sentenced on April 23 to two years’ probation and fined $100,000 for giving her classified material while she was working on the book.The sentencing came two months after he agreed to plead guilty to a federal misdemeanor count of unauthorized removal and retention of classified material.
The plea agreement carried a possible sentence of up to a year in prison. In court papers, prosecutors recommended two years’ probation and a $40,000 fine. But Judge David Kessler increased the fine to “reflect seriousness of the offense.” He said Petraeus committed a “grave and uncharacteristic error in judgment.”
Appearing calm and wearing a business suit, Petraeus made a brief statement before he was sentenced, apologizing “for the pain my actions have caused.”
Petraeus attorney Jake Sussman said this was not a case about the public dissemination of classified information, but the wrongful removal of materials.
But prosecutor James Melindres said, “This is a serious criminal offense. He was entrusted with the nation’s most classified secrets. The defendant betrayed that trust”. Melindres says Petraeus compounded that trust by “lying to the FBI.”
In a brief statement after the hearing, Petraeus said this marks the end of a two-and-a-half year ordeal, and he just wants to move on.
“I now look forward to moving on to the next phase of my life,” he said, before walking to a waiting car and leaving.