Disgraced Former Congressman Sentenced to Federal Prison in West Texas

ANTHONY, TX -- Months after pleading guilty to committing a campaign finance violation and resigning from Congress, former California Representative Duncan Hunter (R) will serve his sentence at the Federal Correctional Institute La Tuna in Anthony, TX.

According to his attorney, Devin Burstein, Hunter will begin his 11-month sentence on Jan. 4, 2021.

The Republican congressman and his wife were first arrested in 2018 after the couple was accused of spending $150,000 in campaign funds for personal use. Spending included family vacations, theater tickets, and meals for family and friends.

The couple first pled non-guilty, but Hunter then blamed the misuse of the funds on his wife. She served as his campaign manager at the time.

Even though Hunter originally asked for home confinement his request was denied by the judge.

According to news reports his request was denied because "the number of years and the amount of transactions” showed a pattern of criminal behavior spread out over a decade.

In 2018, Hunter's wife agreed to plead guilty and cooperate with the prosecution. 

Hunter will report to the prison's adjacent minimum-security satellite camp. He was originally expected to begin his sentence in May, but it was pushed back because of the pandemic.

FCI La Tuna is nearly a 10-hour drive from Alpine, CA where Hunter currently resides.

Even though policy created by the Bureau of Prisons calls for inmates to be sent within 500 miles of their homes, experts believe Hunter will be sent to Texas to remove him from his "sphere of influence."

According to Alan Ellis, a federal criminal defense lawyer who writes the Federal Prison Guidebook, Hunter will likely experience a non-violent and boring time will at La Tuna.

“There’s no violence at camps,” said Ellis. “If you so much as look cross-eyed at another inmate, they’re going to put one or both of you in a housing unit until they figure out what’s happening and one or both of you will be transferred to another facility.”