If He's Convicted, L.A. Councilman Richard Alarcon Could See Real Time Behind Bars

La Opinion newspaper looked at the seven cases in the last nine years in which politicians have been successfully prosecuted by the Los Angeles County District Attorney for lying about where they lived and found that in at least two of those cases officials saw serious jail time.

That might not bode well for Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon, who this week faced 18 counts of felony perjury, voter fraud and other alleged violations of the law because, authorities claim, he hasn't been living in the district he represents. Alarcon is steadfast in his denial of the charges. But La Opinion looked at the "what ifs" and concluded the following (via Google translation from Spanish):

If Councilmember Richard Alarcon is convicted of 18 counts, he could receive a maximum sentence from 15 to 20 years in a state prison and be denied to run for political office in the state of California for life ...

In those other residency cases, two politicians received six-month sentences.