Omri Sharon claims that the sentence imposed on him is unprecedented in its severity, and was a radical deviation from the usual and accepted punishment. He said his punishment was discriminatory and unfair.
Omri Sharon today filed an appeal with the Tel Aviv District Court against his the severity of his sentence. He was convicted after pleading guilty of violating the Parties Law (1992) by accepting illegal donations, receiving and spending greater than permitted amounts, not managing accounts and submitting a candidate’s report.
Omri Sharon was also convicted under the Criminal Code [New Version] (1977) for false registration of corporate documents, perjury, and violating corporate bylaws.
Tel Aviv Magistrates Court President Judge Edna Bekenstein sentenced Omri Sharon to nine months in prison, nine months probation, and a NIS 300,000 fine.
In his appeal today, Sharon said the Tel Aviv Magistrates Court’s attitude towards him was extremely severe, and deviated radically from the sentencing standards in similar, and even worse, cases. He said the court ignored the fact that the prosecution did not provide even one precedent to base its request for the extraordinary punishment of jail time.
Responding to comments by Judge Bekenstein, Sharon said she had imposed a severe sentence on him in order to drain the swamp of political corruption. He said she turned him into a symbol of corruption that warranted severe punishment that did not conform to the charges or circumstances of the case in question. He added that he had taken full responsibility for his actions and behavior after he was indicted, and that this conduct should have provided mitigating grounds for a lighter sentence.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on March 30, 2006
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