July 01--REPORTING FROM SAN FRANCISCO -- Former California state Sen. Leland Yee pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering in federal court Wednesday, admitting that he "knowingly and intentionally agreed with another person" to take part in a criminal enterprise and commit at least two offenses and affect state commerce.
Yee, a Democrat from San Francisco, told U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer that he admitted his guilt and knew he could face a harsh sentence, which will be handed down on Oct. 21.
Assistant U.S. Atty. Susan Badger told the court that could include up to 20 years in prison, $250,000 in fines, possible restitution to victims, asset forfeiture and potential deportation if appropriate.
Yee seemed jovial when he entered the court, sitting briefly with members of the media, chatting and shaking hands.
Prodded by Breyer, he said he understood that his sentence could exceed the range stated in the plea agreement. He retains the right to appeal on that issue, as well as issues relating to proficiency of counsel but not on the underlying charge.
"Are you pleading guilty of your own free will because you are guilty?" Breyer asked him.
"I am," Yee answered.
Yee was indicted in March 2014 on charges of accepting $62,000 in campaign contributions in return for legislative favors and offering to arrange the sale of machine guns and shoulder-fired missiles to an undercover FBI agent posing as a mob figure.
Racketeering charges were added later, alleging that he attempted to extort campaign contributions from an NFL team owner and supporters of mixed martial arts.
Yee originally pleaded not guilty and remained in office on paid suspension until his term expired at the end of 2014. Three codefendants, including Yee political consultant Keith Jackson, also had pleaded not guilty.
The criminal prosecution of Chinatown association leader Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow and 23 others charged in the federal sting is proceeding separately. They are accused of selling drugs and stolen property and running a money laundering operation between San Francisco and New Jersey.
Jackson, a former school board member and communtiy activist, also pleaded guilty Wednesday to the same count of racketeering as Yee, admitting to participating in the political corruption scheme under which he accepted money in exchange for political favors Yee had pledged to deliver.
Outside court, James Brosnahan, Jackson's attorney, said, "Today, Keith entered an honest plea as to what he actually did, and basically it's political .... [The plea] is an effort to put this behind him, to face up to what he did."
But Brosnahan blasted the FBI for working with Jackson for nearly two years, paying him $65,000 to do "honest work," before presenting him with illegal opportunities. As part of the probe, investigators also saw fit to "wire up and meet with innocent people all over the place," including former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana.
Many of those meetings led nowhere.
"This does not mean that Keith isn't facing up to what he eventually did," Brosnahan said. "But 'eventually' is the operative word."
Jackson's son, Brandon Jackson, and sports promoter Marlon Sullvan pleaded guilty to a different single count of racketeering involving an affiliation with Chow's Chinatown fraternal organization known as the Shee Kung Tong. The underlying crimes included cocaine and arms trafficking and an alleged murder-for-hire plot.
All other charges in the case are expected to be dropped against all four defendants.
Yee is the only one of the defendants who did not negotiate a sentencing deal as part of his plea agreement. He acknowledged in court to Breyer that he had no assurances about the sentence he would receive.
He could receive up to 20 years in prison, though attorneys unrelated to the case anticipate it will less. Prosecutors agreed to a sentence of six to 10 years for Keith Jackson, four to eight years for Brandon Jackson and five to eight years for Sullivan, attorneys said.
None of the men agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in the remaining case.
"No, no, no, no," Brosnahan said when asked if Keith Jackson might testify against any of the others in the Chow case. "The government isn't interested in his testimony and he doesn't have any testimony."
Attorneys for Brandon Jackson and Sullivan echoed that.
In the expanded indictment released last July, Yee was charged with one count of "conspiracy to conduct the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity," and two counts of conspiracy "to obtain property under the color of official right."
A conviction under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) carries a possible prison sentence of 20 years or more and huge fines, said Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School and a former federal prosecutor.
"RICO allows the prosecution to tie together different types of illegal activities and conspiracies. Thus, it is a more expansive charge," Levenson said. "From a public relations point of view, being charged with racketeering certainly sounds worse and connotes the activities of organized crime."
The indictment alleged that in exchange for official actions, Yee accepted contributions to his 2011 campaign for mayor of San Francisco and for his later abandoned 2014 campaign for secretary of state.
The alleged racketeering enterprise involving Yee and Jackson included "extorting individuals and professional sports teams related to the passage of legislation governing the ability of professional athletes to collect worker's compensation for injuries in California," according to the indictment.
Yee was charged with winning passage of a Senate resolution honoring Chow's organization in exchange for a bribe, but was not accused of taking part in any crimes with Chow. Jackson was an associate of Chow's and prosecutors said he was the link that justified including Yee in the same indictment.
In 2013, Yee allegedly told an undercover FBI agent posing as an Arizona businessman that he should contact an NFL team owner the agent claimed to know and the owner "should contact Yee with an offer to help Yee," because he would be a key vote on the worker's compensation bill, the indictment said.
The undercover agent allegedly asked Yee how much his vote would cost and Yee allegedly said, "Oh no ... we gotta drag it out, man. We gotta juice this thing," the indictment said.
The indictment provided no evidence that an actual NFL owner was involved.
The undercover agent offered Yee $60,000 for his vote, the indictment said, but Yee, after voting for the bill in committee, did not receive a campaign contribution. Yee abstained when the full Senate approved the bill.
The indictment also accused Yee and Jackson of "extorting individuals related to the California State Athletic Commission and the Mixed Martial Arts industry regarding retaining the existence of CSAC and its ability to regulate certain sports in California."
Staff writers Paige St. John and Patrick McGreevy in Sacramento contributed to this report.
UPDATE
1:31 p.m.: This post was updated with details about other defendants and reaction.
11:41 a.m.: This post has been updated with courtroom remarks by Leland Yee and Judge Charles Breyer.
This story was first posted at 11:27 a.m.
