Former Alabama booster Young gets 6 months in prison 6/13/2005, 7:39 p.m. ET By WOODY BAIRD The Associated Press
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) � A former Alabama football booster convicted of bribing a high school coach to get a top recruit for the Crimson Tide was sentenced Monday to six months in prison. Logan Young, 64, also was sentenced to six months home confinement after his release from prison and then two years' supervised release. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Breen allowed Young to remain free pending appeal. Prosecutors asked for a sentence of two years to 30 months in prison. Young sought probation, house arrest and public service. Young already has been ordered to pay $96,100 in restitution for structuring bank withdrawals to hide a crime. Young said he was not upset that his chief accuser, former high school coach Lynn Lang, avoided jail time after pleading guilty to taking part in a racketeering conspiracy. "I don't have a problem with that," Young said as he left the federal courthouse. "I'm happy with what I got." Young said he was right to go to trial and believes his lawyers have a good chance of overturning his conviction at the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Lang testified against Young, saying he paid $150,000 to get defensive lineman Albert Means to sign with Alabama five years ago. Defense lawyers contend Young committed no crime as defined by the law. He was convicted under federal law of money laundering and racketeering conspiracy. The underlying offense, however, was a violation of state law, bribing a public servant. Defense lawyers argued that Lang's job as a high school coach did not include advising athletes on which colleges to attend, so Young could not have bribed him to violate his official duties. Lawyer James Neal said that argument will be at the heart of Young's appeal. Breen said Young's trial exposed part of the "underbelly of college sports" and he hoped the prison sentence will keep other wealthy college boosters from "using their money" to control the lives of student athletes. Young's lawyers said he needs a kidney transplant and could not get proper medical care in prison. Before sentencing, Young asked the judge, "I beg you to let me ... continue to get my transplant, hopefully within the next six months." Assistant U.S. Attorney Fred Godwin argued that Young could get competent medical care in prison. In deciding on a lighter punishment than the government sought, Breen refused to classify Means as a "vulnerable victim" under sentencing guidelines. The sentencing hearing began Thursday but was delayed after defense arguments focused on an interview in The Commercial Appeal newspaper of Memphis in which Lang claimed the Means family got $60,000 of the payoff money. Defense attorney Robert Hutton argued that Means wasn't hurt by the conspiracy to send him to Alabama. Means said at Young's trial that Lang arranged for another student to take the college entrance exam for him. "As a result of this conspiracy, he was able to attend college," Hutton said. Godwin argued that even if his family got money, Means still was an impressionable teenager from a poor family who was victimized by adults. The NCAA has said it believed Means was unaware his football talents were being brokered. Means refuses to talk about Lang's allegations. Lang testified at Young's trial that other universities, including Georgia, Kentucky, Arkansas, Memphis, Mississippi, Michigan State and Tennessee, offered him money or jobs to get Means. No charges were filed against anyone with those schools. Three former coaches, Rip Scherer of Memphis, Jim Donnan of Georgia and Ivy Williams, an Alabama assistant, testified Lang was lying. Means' recruitment became part of an NCAA investigation that led to sanctions against Alabama in 2002, costing the Crimson Tide scholarships and bowl appearances. Lang, the former head coach at Trezevant High in Memphis, lost his job because of the recruiting scandal and now lives in Michigan. He testified against Young while waiting to be sentenced on a guilty plea to crossing state lines as part of a racketeering conspiracy. Prosecutors supported Lang's request to avoid prison and he was sentenced to two years probation and 500 hours of community service. Means transferred to Memphis after one season at Alabama and finished his college eligibility last season. Copyright 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. � 2005 al.com All Rights Reserved. _______________________________________________ RTF mailing list [email protected] http://rolltidefan.net/mailman/listinfo/rtf_rolltidefan.net
