White Hall mayor pleads guilty to violating state ethics law

White Hall Mayor John Jackson has pleaded guilty to ethics charges, agreed to resign within 72 hours and pay $43,609 in restitution, according to a release from the office of Attorney General Troy King.
Jackson pleaded guilty Monday to a misdemeanor for violating state ethics law by depositing a check intended for the town of White Hall, which is west of Montgomery in Lowndes County. He pleaded guilty in Lowndes County Circuit Court.
Jackson cannot qualify to run for public office within the next two years. He must pay the restitution to White Hall by Nov. 20.
The Circuit Court will consider the state's recommendation for a 12-month sentence and the defendant's application for probation on Dec. 2.
"This conviction is important because it will remove an admitted criminal from office, and it will return money that rightfully belongs to citizens of White Hall to the town's treasury," King said.
State prosecutors presented evidence to a Lowndes County grand jury, which resulted in Jackson's indictment in 2008.

-- posted by Sebastian Kitchen