Former Indianapolis Councilor Plowman Sentenced To Jail

Photo: Dan Goldblatt/WFIU

U.S. Attorney Joe Hogsett says other public officials should learn from Plowman's conviction.

A former Indianapolis police officer and city-county council member was sentenced to more than three years in prison Thursday for committing bribery and attempted extortion. Lincoln Plowman, 48, was previously convicted by a jury for accepting more than $5,000 in cash from an undercover FBI agent posing as a strip club developer at the Conrad hotel in downtown Indianapolis. The deal was videotaped and shown during his trial in September.

Plowman‘s attorney, Jim Voyles, says his client regrets his actions.

“I think he was speaking from the heart when he had to indicate that it going to be a terrible burden on his family for this situation,” Voyles says.

The sentence handed down by U.S. district court judge Larry McKinney falls well short of the maximum allowable jail term of 30 years in prison. Federal prosecutors had requested a 6 1/2 year sentence. Still, U.S. Attorney Joe Hogsett says he is putting other public officials on notice.

“There is no question that the United States Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice will remain extremely vigilant in its investigation and its prosecution of anyone who violates the public trust, as was the case in the Lincoln Plowman trial,” Hogsett says.

Plowman‘s attorney, Jim Voyles, had asked for a sentence of less than 18 months. During the sentencing hearing, Plowman tearfully pled for mercy, calling his behavior “inexcusable.” Voyles plans to appeal. Meanwhile,  Plowman is scheduled to begin serving the sentence January 1.