Will Hoover wants to know why he was sentenced to 100 years in prison after being convicted of a $13 million fraud when former WorldCom chief Bernie Ebbers got 25 years for an $11 billion crime.
The former Cherry Creek financial adviser for wealthy clients appealed his sentence Wednesday, claiming it “cries out for correction.”
Hoover also challenged his conviction last year in Denver District Court on 43 felony counts of fraud, theft and racketeering involving the bilking of 25 people.
In a 45-page brief filed with the Colorado Court of Appeals, Hoover’s attorneys argued that his sentence far exceeded Ebbers’ and that of former Tyco chief Dennis Kozlowski, sentenced this week to eight to 25 years for his role in the theft of $170 million.
Hoover’s attorneys said his sentence is 50 times greater than the average fraud sentence and five times greater than the average murder sentence.
“When you try to look for comparable situations, comparable sentences, there are none,” said Hoover attorney Sean Connelly. “Ebbers’ exceptionally harsh sentence of 25 years was a case involving the largest financial losses in the history of American jurisprudence.”
Prosecutors, however, said the comparison isn’t appropriate. Chief Denver Deputy District Attorney Joe Morales said felons convicted of federal crimes typically serve close to their entire sentence, while those convicted of state crimes serve 50 to 60 percent, “if they’re good.”
“I agree it is a lot of time for a white-collar defendant,” said Morales, who led the prosecution of Hoover. “But if you were to take $1 million from someone, how much time would that be worth? Four years? Multiply that by 25 victims, and you get 100 years. That’s essentially what the judge did.
“It wasn’t one act. It was thousands of criminal acts. This had huge ramifications for many people,” Morales said, adding that the ease of proving Hoover’s crimes likely added to his sentence.
Denver District Judge Sheila Rappaport sentenced Hoover in July 2004 to four years for each of 25 fraud charges, to be served consecutively. She also gave him concurrent sentences of four years each for 18 theft charges and 24 years for the state racketeering charge.
Connelly argued in Hoover’s appeal brief that he should be sentenced to eight to 24 years, the sentence range for the racketeering charge. That charge should cover all the alleged crimes, he said.
It could take years before appeals over Hoover’s sentence are exhausted. Any ruling by the appeals court may be appealed to the Colorado Supreme Court. Hoover’s attorneys also could, if all other means fail, ask a Denver District judge to reduce the sentence.
Hoover also is appealing his conviction on the basis that the court erred in excluding certain testimony and in giving instructions to the jury.
Hoover is serving his sentence at the Sterling Correctional Facility in northeast Colorado.
Staff writer Greg Griffin can be reached at 303-820-1241 or ggriffin@denverpost.com.
