Ashli Ford asks to be spared prison time
Court filing: Her husband is disabled; she is sole provider for her family; and she didn't cause anyone any physical harm,
SANDUSKY —
Ashli Ford should be spared prison time when she is sentenced on Monday in Erie County Common Pleas Court, according to a sentencing memorandum filed by her attorney on Friday (today).
A self-described anti-corruption advocate, Ford was convicted on four felony intimidation charges in May related to a social media post a judge determined was a “true threat” made against Norwalk city officials.
The convictions followed a bench trial in May in which visiting Judge Debra L. Boros acquitted Ford of 15 other charges, including nine counts of extortion, three counts of telecommunications fraud, and three counts of falsification. Ford had no prior criminal record before this case and a misdemeanor case in 2023 in Norwalk Municipal Court.
Prosecutors have asked Boros to sentence Ford to 30 months in prison, citing the seriousnesses of the offenses and fears that she is highly likely to commit crime again, according to a sentencing memorandum filed with the court on July 8.
Pattakos filed his response on Friday, just three days before her sentencing. He urged against prison time, arguing that Ford’s words were political speech protected by the First Amendment and that her conviction would be challenged on appeal. He stressed that her conduct caused no physical harm, that she has led an otherwise law-abiding life.
Read Pattakos’ sentencing memorandum below
“It is Ford's commentary on matters of public concern that form the underlying basis of these convictions — a single Facebook post where Ford raised her political grievances with Norwalk Mayor David Light, safety director Michael White, law director and city prosecutor Stuart O'Hara and former police Chief David Smith after she had been prosecuted for charges of ‘falsification’ in Norwalk Municipal Court,” Pattakos wrote.
The judge ruled the post, which included the sentence, “I will escort you to your demise more akin to Malcolm X than Martin Luther King Jr.,” was a true threat against city officials.
But Pattakos cited other portions of the post, which he contends is protected speech.
“She stated she would ‘slowly crumble the reputation every single person who stands in the way of justice. I will not be professional or political, though I have mastered both,’” Pattakos wrote in the court filing.
Pattakos stated that her references to the two civil rights leaders — who were both violently killed — was in regard “to Malcolm X's advocacy for self-empowerment in contrast to Martin Luther King Jr.'s encouragement for ‘turning the other cheek.’”
Pattakos, in the sentencing motion, stated that Ford’s husband suffers from serious heart conditions — hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure — and is unable to work or drive alone. Pattakos also cited Ford’s 15 years of work as a consultant for businesses and her ongoing podcast and investigative work into local government corruption and unsolved crimes.
“Ms. Ford is the sole breadwinner for her family, including her four children and her husband,” Pattakos wrote.
The defense is also asking the court to merge the four counts into one for sentencing, saying they stemmed from a single Facebook post with a single intent.
She has 4 kids?