Schlichter Sentenced to Two Years for Fraud : Jurisprudence: Former quarterback stole nearly $500,000 to fuel his gambling addiction.

A repentant Art Schlichter, broken by a gambling addiction that cost him a once-promising football career, was sentenced to 24 months in prison Friday for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars to fuel his habit.

Schlichter, jailed since November, stood somberly in gray jail garb with his hands behind his back as U.S. District Judge Philip Pro imposed the maximum sentence possible on his guilty plea to bank fraud.

“I’m terribly sorry for what I’ve done,” Schlichter told the judge. “I’m ashamed. I hope I can someday prove I can be an honest person and get my life in order.”

Pro, in rejecting a request for a lighter sentence with time split between prison and a halfway house, also put Schlichter on five years’ probation and ordered him to pay $175,000 in restitution to his victims.

The terms of the probation prohibit Schlichter from entering or working in casinos or taking a job that has anything to do with sports betting or gambling.

“You’re not here today because you’re a compulsive gambler, but you are a compulsive gambler,” Pro told Schlichter. “I don’t question for a minute that you suffer from that. But people were hurt by your criminal conduct.”

Schlichter sat slumped, his head in his hands, during much of the 80-minute sentencing hearing. The former Ohio State and Indianapolis Colts quarterback was pale and gaunt from losing 55 pounds since being jailed after his guilty plea in November.

Prosecutor John Ham urged the judge to impose the maximum sentence, saying even the loss of his NFL career and the financial ruin of more than a decade of gambling still hadn’t stopped Schlichter from committing the crimes.

“What this court will do today should have been done some time ago,” Ham said. “Maybe justice has been delayed too long. In the past he has been shown too much leniency.”

Schlichter’s mother watched from a courtroom seat as defense lawyer Ben Kay tried unsuccessfully to get an 18-month sentence that would be split between prison and a halfway house.

Kay said the victims of Schlichter’s elaborate network of crimes would be better served by giving him an opportunity to make a living as a broadcaster, or as an Arena Football League quarterback.

“He’s got the wherewithal, all he’s got to do is not gamble,” Kay said.

Ham, however, noted that Schlichter continued to forge checks and con people out of money even after being indicted in Cincinnati on fraud charges last April.

The prosecutor said he and his case investigator were amazed that Schlichter was able to manipulate dozens of people at a time and still be able to keep track of his crimes in an organized manner.

“He has told so many lies to so many people,” Ham said. “His family is also a victim. He has financially devastated his family as well as himself.”

Pro agreed with a request by Schlichter to serve his sentence in a federal prison in Terre Haute, Ind., so he can be closer to his wife and two children, who are living with her parents in Indiana. He also gave him credit for the time already served in the North Las Vegas jail.

The judge listened as Schlichter stood at a podium and expressed his remorse just before being sentenced.

“I’ve let an addiction ruin a big part of my life,” said Schlichter, a first-round draft pick of the Colts in 1982. “I’m ashamed to stand here before you. I don’t blame anyone else for what happened. I take full responsibility for my actions.”

Schlichter, 34, still faces felony bank fraud charges in Indianapolis and possible additional state charges in Las Vegas in addition to the Cincinnati charges.

Kay said efforts were being made for plea bargains in those cases, and noted that the federal court plea agreement allowed for other sentences to run concurrently with his federal sentence.

Schlichter admitted stealing money from a variety of friends, relatives and casual acquaintances, including people who called in on his Las Vegas sports radio talk show.

Prosecutors estimated he conned people out of nearly $500,000, including $16,500 in checks he stole from his sister-in-law.

Schlichter was fined $84 and placed on probation for gambling in Indianapolis in 1987 after he pleaded guilty to illegally betting more than $200,000 on football and basketball games.

The former Ohio State star was suspended from the NFL after bookies threatened him while trying to collect more than $150,000 in debts. He sought and received reinstatement to the league and played for the Colts in 1984 and 1985 before being cut.

He filed for bankruptcy in 1988, listing debts of more than $1 million.

Schlichter led the Detroit Drive to an Arena Football League title in 1990 and played for a semipro team in 1991. He later worked as a radio talk show host in Las Vegas.