Former Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner and University of Kentucky basketball star Richie Farmer has been sentenced to 27 months in prison.
Farmer previously pleaded guilty to corruption charges for misappropriating government resources while in office. The sentence also requires Farmer to pay over $120,000 in restitution for abusing his power. Farmer’s attorney Guthrie True says he's disappointed in the ruling. He'd sought to have Farmer serve only 21 months.
“All that Richie’s done and accomplished in life is not wiped out by this, and I think people ought to remember that,” said True. “I mean, he served our state well in many respects as the commissioner of agriculture and, you know, he certainly served a lot of interests that are important to a lot of us, that give pride to our state, our basketball team, our university. And he’s accomplished a lot in life and he will accomplish more in life.”
Farmer is ordered to report to prison on March 18. After his sentence is served, he will be placed on one year’s probation. He expressed contrition as he left the courtroom.
“Obviously disappointed, but, you know, certainly I wanna say to the people of the state how sorry that I am and how much they’ve meant to me and thank them for all the understanding and, you know, you make bad decisions, poor judgments, and, you know, you own up to those mistakes and you move on,” said Farmer. And that’s what I would hope that people of the state would be willing to do.”
Farmer was a member of the UK men’s basketball team’s roster of star players known as “The Unforgettables.”
