Former Oklahoma state Sen. Ralph Shortey, who was once Trump’s campaign chair in the Sooner state, has cut a plea deal in his child prostitution and child pornography case. According to the Washington Post, Shortey has pled guilty to a child sex trafficking charge that will allow him to not face three child pornography charges.
“After looking at all the evidence and case law and statues and everything else, we just felt that this would give him the best opportunity to come out with the best outcome possible,” Blau told The Washington Post. “It would’ve been an extraordinarily difficult case to win a trial.”
Had Shortey gone to trial and lost, he would’ve been looking at a 30-year prison sentence at the very least, Blau said. The sex trafficking charge is punishable by at least 10 years in prison. Federal law requires defendants to serve at least 75 percent of their sentence. In Shortey’s case, that would be 8 1/2 years, but a judge will ultimately decide on what his sentence would be.
The police investigation found that Shortey had created a whole online world that was not in line with his “Christian values.”
Shortey was charged with engaging in child prostitution, transporting a minor for prostitution and engaging in prostitution within 1,000 feet of a church. The motel was near First Christian Church. Those charges were dismissed in September, when state officials turned over the case to federal prosecutors. Shortey was indicted in federal court on child pornography and sex trafficking charges that same month.
Shortey was forced to resign amidst these charges. Roy Moore hasn’t commented on this case.