Whitworth Gets 365 Years--Eligible for Parole in 60 : ‘I’m Sorry,’ Navy Spy Tells Judge

A federal judge, rejecting Jerry Whitworth’s pleas for mercy, sentenced the retired Navy chief radioman to 365 years in federal prison today for selling highly sensitive code secrets to a Soviet spy ring led by former shipmate John Walker.

Whitworth, convicted on seven counts of espionage, must serve at least 60 years before he will be eligible for parole.

The former Navy radioman, called by the government the central figure in the most damaging spy ring in U.S. military history, said just one line as he was sentenced by U.S. District Judge P. John Vukasin.

“I just want to say I’m very, very sorry,” Whitworth said.

Vukasin listened to an hour of arguments from both defense and government attorneys before pronouncing sentence.

‘Most Spectacular’

“Jerry Whitworth was one of the most spectacular spies of this century,” the judge said.

He described Whitworth as an intelligent man with a “seemingly distinguished career in the Navy.” But he said he had sold out his country and his military colleagues to the Soviet Union.

Vukasin continued: “His consideration of 200 million Americans can only be described as cynical. . . . Mr. Whitworth represents the type of modern man whose highest expression lies in his immorality.”

Vukasin’s harsh sentence went considerably beyond what prosecutors had asked for. Assistant U.S. Atty. William S. Farmer had asked for only 150-year sentences with no possible parole before 50 years.

Whitworth, 47, of Davis, Calif., was convicted July 24 of selling to the Walker family spy ring the secrets of Navy decoding equipment, code keys and communications systems he gathered and photographed for nearly a decade as a trusted radio operator at ship and shore stations.

Tax Evasion Conviction

He also was convicted of tax evasion on the $332,000 that he was paid by John Walker Jr., Whitworth’s longtime friend, former fellow radio instructor and confessed leader of the spy ring.

Walker was to have been sentenced today in Baltimore to two life terms under a plea bargain, with parole possible in 10 years. But sentencing has been delayed until Oct. 3 at the prosecution’s request.

Whitworth’s lawyer, James Larson, filed papers with Vukasin on Tuesday urging a sentence no harsher than Walker’s. Larson said Walker was “unquestionably . . . more culpable” than Whitworth.

Larson said Whitworth is “racked with guilt and remorse,” has undergone three days of “debriefing” by government agencies since his conviction and is prepared for more.

But Farmer said in court papers that Whitworth, “even on the eve of sentencing, after being convicted following a protracted public trial that detailed his treachery, . . . will not, or cannot, own up to his responsibility.”

Walker pleaded guilty last October in Baltimore federal court and agreed to testify against Whitworth in exchange for a reduced sentence for Walker’s son, Michael, who also pleaded guilty. Walker’s brother, Arthur, was convicted of spying by a federal judge and sentenced to life in prison.