Appellate court denies Kenneth Fairley's request for rehearing News Sports Southern Miss Life Opinion Obituaries eNewspaper Legals CRIME Appellate court denies Fairley's request for rehearing; case goes back to lower court Lici Beveridge Hattiesburg American View Comments A petition for rehearing filed in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals by the Rev. Kenneth Fairley has been denied. On Tuesday, his case was remanded to U.S. District Court Mississippi Southern District for Judge Keith Starrett to review. Fairley, 64, was found guilty by a federal jury in September 2016 of two counts of theft of government funds and one count of conspiracy to defraud the government, involving money received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development through grants administered by the city of Hattiesburg. Starrett presided over the trial. In a 2-1 decision, the appellate judges vacated the theft convictions and remanded sentencing for the conspiracy conviction to the U.S. District Court Mississippi Southern District "to determine whether Fairley's sentence should be changed in light of the vacated convictions." More:Rev. Kenneth Fairley seeks to have 3rd conviction overturned His attorneys, in the motion for the rehearing, said the error cited for throwing out the other two convictions should be the same for throwing out the third. "The jury was never given a coherent, accurate, legally acceptable definition of the offense, and this is plain error," wrote Herbert Larson, one of Fairley's attorneys. "We obviously thought that all three convictions should have been overturned," Larson said in an earlier story. "The distinction (made between the counts by the appellate judges) was a distinction without a difference." Larson said in the story the legal team will not stop fighting for Fairley. "It is presently our intention that we will seek relief in U.S. Supreme Court," Larson said. He could not be reached for comment Friday for this story. Fairley, senior pastor of Mount Carmel Baptist Church, was sentenced to three years in prison. He was ordered to serve his sentence at the minimum-security Pensacola Federal Prison Camp but later was relocated to the low-security Oakdale Prison in Oakdale, Louisiana. He has served about a year of his sentence. More:2 of Rev. Kenneth Fairley's 3 convictions overturned on appeal Fairley initially faced six charges tied to grant money his nonprofit organization received through a HUD home rehabilitation program. Three of those charges were dropped the first day of trial: two counts of engaging in monetary transactions to criminally derive property and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The conspiracy charge stemmed from activity between Fairley and Artie Fletcher, a Picayune businessman who operates a number of businesses in the New Orleans area. The government proved Fairley and Fletcher entered into an agreement in which Fletcher was contracted to conduct the rehabilitation work but the actual work was subcontracted "to local individuals and companies who attempted to perform the work for a lesser amount." Pine Belt Community Services, of which Fairley is director, turned in about $38,000 in receipts for two homes it was supposed to rehabilitate using the HUD grants. The homes are located at 202 South St. and 127 E. Fifth St. More:Jury finds Kenneth Fairley guilty on all three counts Pine Belt Community Services received around $98,000 for the projects, which left around $60,000 unaccounted for. Fairley was ordered to pay $60,223.95 in restitution and a $30,000 fine. He also was ordered to serve three years of post-release supervision. Fletcher, who was indicted with Fairley but pleaded guilty to a separate charge of misprision of a felony, was given three years of probation and also ordered to pay $60,223.95 in restitution. The other charges against him were dropped. Fletcher admitted he had knowledge of a felony and did not make it known to authorities. View Comments About Us Staff Directory Careers Accessibility Support Site Map Legals Our Ethical Principles Terms of Service Privacy Policy Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy Do Not Sell My Info / Cookie Policy Contact Us Support Local Businesses Advertise Your Business Advertising Terms and Conditions Buy and Sell Licensing & Reprints Help Center Subscriber Guide My Account Give Feedback Subscribe Today Newsletters Mobile Apps Facebook Twitter E-Edition Storytellers Archives RSS Feeds Jobs Cars Homes Classifieds Education Reviewed 10Best Reach Local USA TODAY Sports+ © 2022 www.hattiesburgamerican.com. 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