Katrina Brown, Reggie Brown rebuffed in sentencing delay play

Suspended Jacksonville Councilors Katrina and Reggie Brown will be tried together.

Expelled Jacksonville City Council members Katrina Brown and Reggie Brown, convicted of a conspiracy to defraud economic development funds, seek a delay in sentencing.

But if one is coming for the former political rising stars, it won’t be until the end of the month, an order from the Middle District of Florida said Friday.

The court urged the plaintiffs to file after May 1, essentially agreeing with the government’s position that the filing to delay the sentencing is premature.

The Browns worry that coronavirus could befall them in federal prison.

Their filing cites an administrative order on March 29, 2020 from the Chief Judge of the Middle District Florida, arguing that “the currently scheduled May 19, 2020 sentencing date appears to likely transgress this Order, which is ‘effective for 90 days’ … until June 29, 2020,” the filing contends.

The two were convicted of expropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars for personal use from a Small Business Administration-backed loan provided for Katrina Brown’s family’s barbecue sauce plant.

Corrine Brown (former political patron for both unrelated Browns) made a bid for compassionate release on coronavirus grounds last week.

Reggie and Katrina Brown have also sought a new trial recently.

That filing improbably invokes former hedge funder Martin Shkreli, best known for using some of his money to buy an unreleased Wu-Tang Clan album.

The album, now federal evidence, is sought back by the nostalgia rap troupe.

United States v. Shkreli and Greebel, contends the filing, saw one defendant’s testimony used to convict the other.

The contention: “not only was trial counsel for Mr. Brown a second prosecutor, but he performed as a second (actually, a third) prosecutor against his own client, thereby utterly defeating Mr. Brown’s right to a fair trial.”

Ms. Brown represented herself, meanwhile.

Motions were also filed for acquittal and to support a contention that there was no criminal intent or actual loss from the money borrowed.

The conspiracy included multiple counts of wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering for both defendants. Katrina Brown was also found guilty of two counts of false statements to financial institutions, as she attempted to recapitalize the sauce business.