Stadd Avoids Prison, Can Go Back to Dishwashing Job

Former NASA Chief of Staff and White House liaison Courtney Stadd avoided a prison term on corruption charges on Friday:

A former top NASA official was sentenced Friday to three years probation, six months of electronic monitoring and a $2,500 fine for steering contract money to a private client.

Courtney Stadd, of Bethesda, Md., was convicted in August of helping a consulting client — Mississippi State University — get nearly $10 million of the space agency’s funds.

U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer rejected the government’s suggestion of a one-year prison term. She said it was a “close call” in deciding whether Stadd’s conduct was corrupt or a misunderstanding of ethics laws, but added that jury found he ignored his ethical obligations.

The courtroom was nearly filled with dozens of Stadd’s supporters, many of whom wrote the judge attesting to his good character.

Stadd was last heard from three weeks back when he sent out a letter to supporters blaming his “serious political enemies” for his plight and describing his new job washing dishes at a friend’s restaurant in Virginia. He also thanked friends who had written letters on his behalf to the judge – something that seems to have paid off.