Lap it up!

It’s three months behind bars each for two former Charlottesville police officers convicted of lying to federal prosecutors after a corruption probe revealed the officers were probably taking bribes from the owner of a local nightclub. Roy Fitzgerald and Charles Saunders each received three months in prison and the maximum fine of $5,000 for lying in a State and federal investigation.
    The former officers plea-bargained to get other charges dropped, including bribery, conspiracy and witness tampering.
    As far back as 1996, Fitzgerald and Saunders allegedly ignored illegal activities involving the now-defunct Max nightclub. Its owner, Charles M. Phillips, who also owns a local escort service, is said to have rewarded the two officers with money and sexually explicit entertainment for overlooking illegal after-hours behavior at the club. Phillips was convicted of conspiracy to commit bribery and was sentenced to probation on Friday, September 22.
    A June plea hearing revealed documents suggesting that Fitzgerald and Saunders warned Phillips about drug and prostitution investigations concerning him. During the same hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Bondurant accused Fitzgerald of lying to an FBI agent to hide that Saunders, 47, allegedly had sex with a blindfolded 16-year-old girl. Saunders has denied the incident, which could be tried in state courts.
    Fitzgerald served 15 years and Saunders served seven before they were fired from the Charlottesville Police Department. Both face supervised probation after their release from prison.