Former San Francisco Supervisor Ed Jew was sentenced today in state court to additional jail time for perjury for lying on election documents about residing in San Francisco.
San Francisco Superior Court Judge Kay Tsenin sentenced Jew, who pleaded guilty in November to one count of perjury for lying about his place of residence on documents he filed while running for supervisor in 2006, to three years' probation and one year in county jail, plus about $2,000 in fines.
Earlier this month, Jew was sentenced in federal court to five years and four months in federal prison for extortion.
The 49-year-old owner of a Chinatown flower shop was elected to the Board of Supervisors in November 2006 to represent the city's Sunset District and took office the following month.
"I deeply regret the decision I made," Jew told Tsenin today. "I never should have made that declaration."
Jew had asserted that he had lived in San Francisco all his life, but admitted he had in fact been living in Burlingame at the time.
"This was a very serious crime," Assistant District Attorney Evan Ackiron said.
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"Mr. Jew lived in Burlingame since 1997 and he lied about that information on his election form," Ackiron said.
In addition to perjury, prosecutors had initially charged counts of election code violations, voter fraud and providing false documents, but those charges were dismissed as part of the plea deal.
In his run for District 4 supervisor, Jew stated that he lived at 2450 28th Ave. in San Francisco. However, prosecutors alleged that his house in Burlingame was his main residence.
Ackiron told Tsenin today that Jew had repeatedly lied about the San Francisco residence, as investigators uncovered evidence that no garbage was being collected there, and there was no water service.
When evidence revealed the home had no electrical service, Jew finally admitted he wasn't living there, Ackiron said.
"This was not an early admission of guilt," Ackiron told Tsenin. "This was a hard-fought, pitched battle" that led to the plea agreement, he said.
Though the charges in the case were for alleged crimes dating back to 2003, evidence presented at Jew's preliminary hearing showed criminal conduct "all the way back to 2001" Ackiron said.
"I consider him a good man who made a lot of mistakes," Jew's attorney Stuart Hanlon said.
Jew told reporters outside the hearing, "San Francisco is my home."
He pleaded guilty in October to federal charges of extortion, mail fraud and bribery, admitting to seeking $80,000 from the owners of Quickly tapioca drink shops in exchange for a promise to help them obtain city permits.
He was sentenced in federal court on April 3 to 64 months in prison.
The county jail term will be served following Jew's federal prison term, scheduled to begin July 1.
Hanlon said that with credit for good behavior, Jew will serve about 85 percent of the federal prison time, and will likely then be assigned to a community service program and would only have to serve three to four months of the county jail sentence.
