United States v. Sadolsky
Probated Sentence
Case number: 3:98 CR 00168-JGH Type of case: Computer fraud Jurisdiction: United States District Court Western District of Kentucky, Louisville Date of trial: June 2006 Judge: John G. Heyburn, III
Mr. Sadolsky was accused of embezzling funds from his employer in Louisville, Kentucky, JC Penny Company. Mr. Sadolsky freely admitted his guilt in the case but argued that he was compelled to steal because of a gambling addiction. Mr. Sadolsky entered a guilty plea and the United States Sentencing Guidelines required a mandatory minimum sentence of six months for Mr. Sadolsky's crime.
We were able to convince the Court, however, to probate Mr. Sadolsky after arguing successfully that his gambling addiction warranted a diminished capacity departure under the Sentencing Guidelines.
The United States appealed the sentence and argued that Sadolsky was required by law to serve at least six month in prison. In the only case in United States history authorizing a diminished capacity departure for a gambling addiction, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with us and affirmed Mr. Sadolsky's sentence of probation. See, United States v. Sadolsky, 243 F.3d 938 (6th Cir. 2000).
