An Indian-origin judge in a Texas county, an elected position, who was found guilty of money laundering and was suspended has now been sentenced to 180 days in jail and five years’ probation. Judge Maggie Perez-Jaramillo of the 458th District Court sentenced suspended Fort Bend County judge KP George to the statutory maximum of 10 years in prison for his third-degree felony conviction but probated the sentence, ordering six months in the Fort Bend County Jail followed by five years of community supervision.Other conditions of George’s probation include
- Completing 200 hours of community service
- Completing an anti-theft class
- Not maintaining any active social media accounts
- Not holding employment in any fiduciary capacity
- Paying a $5,000 fine and court fees
- Withholding contact with former chief of staff Taral Patel, who pleaded guilty last year to two counts of misrepresentation of identity by a political candidate
What did the Kerala-born judge do?
In 2018, George misrepresented his campaign finance reports, transferred more than $46,000 in campaign funds to his personal account and used the money for personal expenses, including to make a down payment on a house and to pay his property taxes.George was elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022, both times as a Democrat. After he was criminally indicted, he became a Republican but failed to secure a GOP nomination for the post.George also faces a misdemeanor charge of misrepresentation of identity for allegedly creating fake racist attacks against his own campaign. A trial in that case is scheduled for July. When he ran for re-election in 2022, he posted as a Facebook user named ‘Antonia Scalywag’ to attack his own campaign.Born in Kerala, KP George came to the US and built a career as a financial planner. He then became a US citizen. He served on the Fort Bend Independent School District board before being elected Fort Bend County Judge in 2018. He was the first person from South Asian descent to hold this position
