Government to seek jail time for former Atlantic City Mayor Frank Gilliam
Prosecutors are asking a federal judge to sentence former Atlantic City Mayor Frank Gilliam to a prison term of 15 to 21 months plus three years of supervised release in connection with a scheme to defraud AC Starz, a nonprofit youth basketball team he founded.
Gilliam pleaded guilty Oct. 3, 2019, to a charge of wire fraud and resigned later the same day as mayor of Atlantic City. His sentencing, delayed multiple times, was set to take place Thursday via videoconference before U.S. District Judge Joseph H. Rodriguez in Camden, but was ordered rescheduled again late Tuesday, a courtroom deputy said.
In a five-page sentencing memorandum filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Farrell, prosecutors argue that Gilliam’s “history and characteristics,” while marked by tragedy, do not merit a downward departure from the sentencing guidelines.
“Gilliam experienced tragedy early in his life and turned to basketball both as an outlet and to avoid the pitfalls of living in a tough neighborhood plagued by drug use,” Farrell wrote, in a redacted copy of the memorandum released to The Inquirer, a reference to Gilliam’s father having murdered his mother inside the family’s home when Gilliam was 3.
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