Former state Sen. Thomas Bromwell Sr.was sentenced Friday to 7 years in federal prison for accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars to secure state contracts for a Baltimore construction company.
Bromwell, 58, a former tavern owner and once among the General Assembly?s most powerful Democrat Party members, pleaded guilty in July to racketeering conspiracy and filing a false tax return.
His wife, Mary Patricia Bromwell, 44, was sentenced to one year and a day in prison for accepting paychecks for a no-show job with a contractor operated by the company, Poole and Kent Co. She pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud.
“We sent a powerful message today and I wish every politician were here to hear it,” said U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein “Here in Maryland, corruption will result in serious punishment.”
Attorneys asked U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz to stagger the couple?s sentences to avoid leaving their three young children, ages 11, 14, and 22, parentless. Motz instructed both to report for their sentences Jan. 7, but said he might reconsider delaying Bromwell?s sentence until his wife serves her term.
