Former Judge Walker Gets 10-Year Sentence For Corruption SHREVEPORT — Former Caddo District Court judge Michael Walker was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for taking kickbacks in return for bond reductions that let drug defendants get out of jail. "Your conduct trampled the idea of equality in justice," U.S. District Judge Maurice Hicks told Walker during a 25-minute sentencing hearing. "You chose cash over the Constitution." Walker, shackled and wearing jail coveralls, showed no visible reaction when the sentence was imposed. He did not address the judge before sentencing. Walker was convicted this past spring in a federal corruption case that ensnared him and Caddo Juvenile Court Judge Vernon Claville. Walker, 58, faced up to 20 years in prison. The sentence Hicks imposed went beyond that recommended in the federal sentencing guidelines — but Hicks noted that Walker's conduct damaged public confidence in the judicial system. Claville will be sentenced on Friday. From: KTBS Channel 3, Shreveport, October 2, 2008, http://www.ktbs.com/story/22365228/former-judge-walker-gets-10-year-sentence-for corruption, accessed 3/1/2016. Reprinted in accordance with the "fair use" provision of Title 17 U.S.C.
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