Former Prince George’s County schools superintendent Andre J. Hornsby was sentenced to six years in federal prison Tuesday night for charges of wire fraud, witness and evidence tampering and obstruction of justice.
After a nearly four-hour hearing that included video and in-person testimonials in support of Hornsby, U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte also ordered the former superintendent to pay $20,000 in fines and an additional $70,000 in restitution.
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A federal jury in July convicted Hornsby of six of 22 charges related to a scheme causing the county school system to award lucrative contracts that benefited himself and a former girlfriend, Department of Justice officials said.
Hornsby had done “really done remarkable things” for Prince George’s County schools, but in the end, failed his students because he was not the role model he could have been, Messitte said.
“This is a tragic case,” the judge said.
The sentence was less than half of what the prosecutors requested, but Messitte’s decision will send a very powerful message, U.S. Attorney for Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein said.
“People who hold public office have a responsibility to pursue the public interest,” and those who do not will be held accountable, he said.
Messitte ordered Hornsby to report to the Federal Correctional Institution in El Reno, just west of Oklahoma City, on Jan. 2.
Hornsby also faces three years of supervised release.
He entered the Greenbelt courthouse arm-in-arm with two of his daughters, one of whom spoke up for her father during the hearing.
“I’m totally embarrassed by what situation I put myself into,” Hornsby said before his sentencing.
He warned his daughters he “may be taken away from you for a while,” and crying erupted from where the girls sat in the courtroom.
After the sentencing, Hornsby called the judge fair, but his attorney, Robert C. Bonsib, said it was still a harsh sentence that they would appeal.
