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San Carlos mayor sentenced to jail time in fraud case

The Associated Press | Friday, Jul 7 2006 4:15 PM

Last Updated: Friday, Jul 7 2006 4:15 PM

The former mayor of San Carlos was sentenced Friday to 45 days in prison for fraudulent billing.

Mike King, 64, also a former councilman, must also serve three years of probation following an April felony conviction for submitting a false claim with intent to defraud and conspiracy to defraud.

San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Barbara Mallach denied requests for a new trial.

"I know how deeply people feel about you Mr. King, and how highly they regard you, so it's a very sad day of course," Mallach said. "On the other hand, this was an incredibly bad error of judgement."

King tried to collect $13,320 from the South County Fire Protection Authority with an inflated invoice from a political consultant.

King testified that a misunderstanding with consultant Margaret "Peg" Collier led her to file the bill for job placement services.

Prosecutors said Collier inflated the amount of work she did in helping laid-off firefighters get new jobs after working on a fundraising measure for the fire authority for which she was never paid. Collier, who pleaded no contest to filing a false claim, testified that King encouraged her to submit the inflated bill.

King's attorney, Chuck Smith, said he planned an appeal.