AKRON, Ohio (AP) — A Tennessee man has received four months in prison for threatening an Ohio congressman during last year's heated health care debate.
A federal judge in Akron, Ohio, sentenced 40-year-old James Schmidlin of Cleveland, Tenn., on Friday. Schmidlin also faces three years of probation.
He was convicted in December of making a March 2010 phone call to the office of then-U.S. Rep. John Boccieri (boh-CHEHR'-ee) threatening to burn down the northeast Ohio Democrat's house.
Prosecutors recommended 14 months in prison.
Schmidlin's public defender asked for probation, saying he's "contrite" and will never call another elected official again.
Boccieri lost his re-election bid in November to Republican Jim Renacci (reh-NAY'-see). Boccieri says the sentence was fair and that there's no place in a democracy for threats or coercion.
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