In the News

Leslie accepts plea deal
Former sheriff, partners plead guilty to misdemeanor conflict of interest charges

By Bill Wilson
The Hutchinson News
October 8, 2002

The business partners in a controversial deal to operate Reno County's jail annex entered guilty pleas Monday to misdemeanor conflict of interest charges.

The pleas by former Reno County Sheriff Larry Leslie, Hutchinson attorney Gerald Hertach and the attorney's MgtGp Inc. short-circuited Monday's anticipated start of their trials on 21 bribery counts.

Instead, Leslie and Hertach will face up to a year in jail at their 9 a.m. Nov. 14 sentencing before Senior Judge Michael Barbara. In addition, each faces a fine of up to twice his monetary gain from the jail annex venture, or approximately $570,000 each.

The plea deal also includes a "joint or separate" agreement to pay Reno County $750,000 in restitution, representing annex profits since it began operation in 1998.

The "joint or separate" provision means that should one party fail to pay, the other two parties to the agreement remain responsible.

And Barbara made it clear Monday that he would not accept an indefinite payment plan for the restitution.

"I want you to be thinking about a timetable," he told the attorneys. "This court is going to be very concerned about a timetable for repayment."

Steve Joseph, Hertach's attorney, teased the plea bargain on Friday when he said his clients would plead to the misdemeanor charges "if charged."

On Monday, prosecutor John Bork agreed to the deal as jurors filed in to begin jury selection.

The conviction falls under Kansas statute 75-4304 (b), which prohibits entering into any contract "where any local governmental officer or employee, acting in that capacity, is a signatory to or a participant in the making of the contract and is employed by or has a substantial interest in the person or business."

Both men pleaded guilty to two counts each of "participation in a prohibited contract," which is a Class B misdemeanor. Each count carries up to six months, but the sentences can be imposed consecutively.

Joseph entered a guilty plea to each count for MgtGp's board of directors, made up of members of the Hertach family. The family faces no jail time but could be fined and is responsible for restitution.

"I'm satisfied in the sense that we pled guilty to the crimes that were committed," Joseph said after the plea agreement was announced in court.

"We pled to what we said in court last Friday was the real situation of what happened. It wasn't bribery. It never was bribery."

Leslie's attorney, Mike Gillespie, declined comment, citing a gag order in the case that Barbara said remains in effect.

Less clear is the impact the pleas will have on Reno County's civil lawsuit against the three partners to recover annex profits.

"It's too early to tell," said Hutchinson attorney Stan Hill, representing the county.

Hill said the county is not in settlement discussions with Leslie, Hertach and MgtGp.

"Obviously, we're going to have to look at the plea agreement and then evaluate where that civil case goes from there," Hill said.

Monday's agreement, announced at 3:30 p.m., ended a full day of settlement talks.

Attorneys originally scheduled a 1:30 p.m. hearing to take the guilty pleas, but that proceeding was delayed by disagreements over the language of the agreement.

© Copyright 2002 The Hutchinson News