James Jensen was sentenced to 10 months in county jail after a judge denied his post-conviction request for a new trial; a former undersheriff awaits trial on related charges in a scandal that forc…
SAN JOSE — A former Santa Clara County sheriff’s captain has been sentenced to 10 months in jail after he wasFILE PHOTO — Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Captain James Jensen is photographed outside of the Hall of Justice on Monday, Aug. 31, 2020, in San Jose, Calif. Jensen was found guilty on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, of felony bribery and conspiracy charges in a scandal that forced the departure of former sheriff Laurie Smith.
The judge’s sentence in many ways split the difference between the requests from Jensen’s attorneys, who sought probation only, and the district attorney’s office, which asked that Jensen be given a 16-month prison term in part to deter other public officials from engaging in similar crimes. But the judge said she also weighed Jensen’s absence of a criminal record, how his crimes did not yield personal financial gain, and his losses to date — of his job, police career and part of his pension — in reaching her sentencing decision. The courtroom gallery was occupied by more than two-dozen family members and supporters of Jensen, including his wife, who asked the judge for leniency on behalf of their two young daughters.
, arguing that his legal defense was hamstrung by not being allowed to tell jurors about the other outcomes in the corruption case, including that of Smith, his former boss. They contended Smith, not Jensen, was the beneficiary of his actions, and that the absence of criminal charges against her undercut the substance of Jensen’s conviction.
In the trial that concluded this year, Jensen was portrayed by prosecutors as a close adviser to Smith and a linchpin in a ploy
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