Jackson Jr. apologized for his crimes and expressed regrets to his mother and father. Jesse Jackson Jr. was sentenced to two and a half years in prison after pleading guilty to engaging in a scheme to spend $750,000 in campaign funds on personal items.  The wife of former Illinois congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. has been sentenced to one year in prison for filing false joint federal income tax returns that understated the income the couple received. Sandi Jackson's lawyers did not get the probation they had sought for her, but they did get an order from the judge allowing her to remain free until her husband finishes serving his time. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson took the unusual step of allowing the Jacksons -- parents of a 13 year old and 9 year old — to stagger their sentences. It was determined to be Jesse Jackson, who will report around Nov. 1. If she were to do so, she said, it would appear as if there were two systems of justice, "one for the well-connected and one for everybody else." I cannot do it and I will not do it.” 
 
 The judge rejected Jackson Jr.’s mental health issues as a defense saying that his string of accomplishments in life — propped up by a political family dynasty — “points to only one conclusion, and that is that you knew better.” 
 
 She said Jackson could not claim his bipolar disorder as a mitigating factor because his series of purchases “were not all sudden and extraordinary purchases.” 
 
 “This was a knowing, organized misconduct that was repeated and then covered up over the years,” the judge said. "I didn't separate my personal life from my political activities, and I couldn't have been more wrong," said Jackson Jr., who paused to dry his eyes and blow his nose. If the judge rejected the mental health defense, she appeared equally unimpressed by Sandi Jackson’s contention that she should escape prison because she needed to be there for her children. “To take the mother away … would be an unbearable burden on these two children,” Webb said. The Jacksons cried as they addressed the judge separately before sentencing. He noted that defendants with children were given prison terms in courts across the country. It is not the government that put your children in this position.” 
 
 She cited spending of campaign funds that included $5,000 in furs and parkas “in one day,” spa trips, Disney trips and expenses in Las Vegas, then ordered Sandi Jackson to pay $22,000 in restitution separate from what her husband owed. Former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., the civil rights leader's son who once dreamed of becoming mayor or senator, and his wife, former 7th Ward Ald. "You were a key player in the Jesse Jackson campaign. All told, he spent 17 years serving the district until he resigned in disgrace last November. She was sentenced Wednesday along with her husband. Matt Graves, an assistant U.S. attorney, countered that Jackson Jr.'s crimes represented one of the largest cases of theft from a campaign treasury ever prosecuted. “This is not [Bernie] Madoff. Bernard Madoff, now imprisoned in the Butner facility, is a financier whose Ponzi scheme led investors to lose their fortunes. It's not as if there are widows and orphans outside the courthouse who are victims and asking for his head, Weingarten said.
– Jesse Jackson Jr. wept in court today, apologized for using $750,000 in campaign funds as his personal piggy bank, and then took his lumps: 30 months in federal prison and three years' probation, reports the Chicago Tribune. “I am the example for the whole Congress,” he said. “I understand that. I didn’t separate my personal life from my political activities, and I couldn’t have been more wrong.” The former Illinois congressman added an unusual request: He wants to serve his time in Alabama because "I want to make it a little inconvenient for everybody to get to me.” His wife, Sandi, then got sentenced to 12 months in prison for filing false tax returns about their income, reports AP. She wept, too. “My heart breaks every day with the pain this has caused my babies,” she said, referring to their two children, ages 9 and 13. Because of the kids, the judge will allow the Jacksons to stagger their sentences and to decide themselves who goes first, reports the Sun-Times. Interesting part noted by the Tribune: The judge made a point to sentence Sandi Jackson to exactly one year, not the more common one year and one day. The latter would have made her eligible for time off for good behavior. Now she must serve her full term.