Mike Thompson Sentenced

Mike Thompson the former director of the Poverty Point Reservoir in Delhi has been sentenced to 18-months in prison for misusing state money Judge Robbie James also ordered Thompson to pay an $8-thousand fine. On Monday, Thompson was found guilty of misusing taxpayer money allocated for the Poverty Point reservoir district. The state said Thompson hired a handy man from poverty point to do personal work for him and then paid him with state money. During that time, it was found the worker accrued $8 thousand in labor, the same amount Thompson must pay back to the state. "I did argue yes that I thought a sentence in the range of 41 to 51 months because we believe he abused his position of trust,” said U.S. District Attorney Mignonne Griffing. “The government wanted a much stiffer sentence........The judge did what he thought was right and we respect his decision,” said Thomson’s Attorney Mike Small. Thompson has 14 days to appeal, however, his attorney would not comment on whether he will or not. After his prison sentence, Thompson must serve 3 years probation. Thompson is scheduled to report to the department of corrections on August 23 to begin serving his time.