Jail Term Is Sought for Kim in Fraud Case

Prosecutors asked a federal judge Friday to sentence Rep. Jay C. Kim (R-Diamond Bar) to jail for accepting more than $250,000 in illegal corporate and foreign campaign contributions.

In a strongly worded sentencing memorandum, the prosecution attacked the three-term congressman for once characterizing U.S. election laws as “stupid” and comparing violations to “jaywalking.”

They suggested that he stole his first election, in 1992, by resorting to illegal spending.

They also accused him of continuing to take illicit contributions long after he knew he was under investigation by the FBI, and then engaging in elaborate cover-up schemes.

And, alluding to his status as the first Korean American elected to Congress, the prosecutors suggested that he took advantage of Korean immigrants who gave him cash or corporate checks, unaware that they were breaking federal election laws.

Kim’s sentence “must not be a slap on the wrist,” the prosecutors said. “It must not approximate a penalty for jaywalking. . . . Kim cannot be permitted to break campaign laws, belittle their significance and escape without appropriate punishment.”

The government also asked that Kim’s wife, June, who played an active role in collecting and concealing illegal campaign funds, be sentenced to home detention or pay a substantial fine, and that the Jay Kim for Congress Committee receive a fine at least equal to the illegal contributions that were accepted.

The Kims had been under investigation since 1993, when The Times disclosed that Kim used money from his own corporation, JayKim Engineers, to bankroll his first bid for Congress.

In a deal with the U.S. attorney’s office in August, Kim and his wife pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor violations of federal election laws that prohibit corporate and most foreign-source contributions.

The government, in turn, promised to recommend zero to six months jail time and a maximum $635,000 in fines for the couple. The prosecutors did not specify in their memorandum Friday how much time Kim should spend in detention.

In Washington, a Kim spokesman said of the prosecution memo: “It’s just their opinion. Mr. Kim’s defense lawyers will file the proper documents with the court, and the judge will exercise his own discretion when he decides sentencing.”

Sentencing will be held March 9 before U.S. District Judge Richard Paez.

Although Paez is not bound by the plea agreement or by the government’s sentencing recommendation, any punishment that involves jail time could constitute a devastating blow to Kim’s effort to retain his seat in the heavily Republican 41st Congressional District covering parts of Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties.

In contrast to previous years, Kim now faces stiff opposition in the June GOP primary race.

His leading challenger is state Assemblyman Gary Miller (R-Diamond Bar), a wealthy real estate developer who has committed $500,000 of his own money to the campaign. Miller has lined up support among many Republican officeholders in the district, including former Kim allies.

“I think it would be most difficult for Mr. Kim to run for reelection from a jail cell,” Miller said Friday. “And I don’t believe Congress would allow him to remain in office if he were sentenced to jail.”

Also in the race is Pete Pierce, an Orange County prosecutor and self-described Reagan conservative, who recently sent out 20,000 mailers introducing himself and calling for Kim to quit.

The House Ethics Committee has named a four-member panel to investigate whether Kim’s actions violated House standards of conduct. The panel will report its findings to the full committee, which will decide if any action should be taken. Punishment could include a reprimand, a fine or expulsion.

Since entering his guilty pleas last year, Kim has kept a low political profile, but in recent weeks he has resumed making appearances at local GOP events.

Although he has yet to hold any public fund-raisers, Kim has been raising small amounts of money in Washington and expects to collect about $625,000 before election day, said longtime political advisor Robert Gouty.

“He will have the money,” said Gouty, “but everything is on hold until after his sentencing. And this time it will be done right. We won’t be making the same errors Jay made in the past.”

But if the prosecution gets its way, Kim’s campaign might have to divert a large share of that money to satisfy a fine of $250,000 or more. Kim’s is the first federal campaign committee convicted of election finance violations since Richard Nixon’s reelection committee in 1974.