Ex-Union Chief Sentenced for Racketeering

[Rose Siding]

MIAMI -- A former union president was sentenced Friday to nearly seven years in prison for receiving payoffs from businesses to not unionize their employees and charging his union for pricey dinners and cars.

Walter Browne, 53, former head of the 7,000-member Federation of Public and Private Employees in Broward County, was convicted last June of racketeering and fraud. He received six years, 10 months in prison.

His sister, Patricia Devaney, 56, the union's secretary, was also convicted in the scheme and received 2 1/4 years in jail.

Prosecutors said the pair took in about $600,000 in payoffs and embezzled money.
...
Their union represented school custodians, jail guards, truck drivers and port employees in the county.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-brf-union-racketeering,0,3000267.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

[rodeodance]

1. sad-he betrayed his union and now the Right will play this up as a

reason to dis UNIONs bad day!!

[AFSCME girl]

2. Oh man......

I hate when this stuff happens. There are so many hard-working union folks out there, trying to do the best they can everyday for their members. This is a shame......x(

[gizmo1979]

3. you and me both.