The former second-ranking official at the U.S. Interior Department was sentenced to 10 months in prison for his role in the Jack Abramoff scandal. U.S. District Judge Ellen Huvelle rejected pleas for leniency from J. Steven Griles, the former deputy interior secretary, and handed down the sentence for a felony conviction of obstructing a Senate investigation into the corrupt lobbyist, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.
Griles, the highest ranking official convicted in the scandal, pleaded guilty in March to charges of lying about his relationship with Abramoff.
"This has been the most difficult time in my life," Griles said before the verdict was announced Tuesday. "My guilty plea has brought me great shame and embarrassment. I have lost my business, my income and, most importantly, my reputation."
However, Huvelle pushed aside Griles' claims of remorse.
"You held a position of trust as number two in the Department of Interior, and I will hold you to a higher standard," Huvelle told Griles. "I find that, even now, you continue to minimize and try to excuse your conduct and the nature of your misstatements."