His challenges and “delay tactics” at an end, former Sen. Brian Kelsey trudged out of federal court Friday toward a 21-month prison sentence for directing a scheme to funnel state campaign funds to his failed 2016 congressional race.
The Germantown Republican who once served as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee took quite a plummet, but his sentence would have been more severe if not for four witnesses who lauded his character, numerous letters to the judge and, finally, Kelsey’s willingness to admit he committed a felony while serving as an elected state official and an officer of the court.
“I’m truly sorry for the actions I have taken,” Kelsey told U.S. District Court Judge Waverly Crenshaw in Nashville during a protracted hearing.
Set to report to prison by Oct. 1, Kelsey hugged friends and family afterward.
Kelsey, who…
