Sheldon Silver, Disgraced Assembly Speaker, Is Furloughed From Prison
Sheldon Silver, the former Assembly Democratic speaker who once dominated New York State politics only to have his career end in a conviction on federal corruption charges, was released from prison on Tuesday as he awaits a decision on whether he can complete his sentence at home.
Mr. Silver, 77, had been in prison for less than a year of a six-and-a-half-year sentence when federal officials, using the leeway afforded them because of the coronavirus pandemic, determined that he was eligible to be furloughed while they consider his request to serve the rest of his sentence under home confinement.
A spokesman for the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan, which prosecuted the case against Mr. Silver, said on Tuesday that the office had been in contact with the federal Bureau of Prisons to strongly oppose his possible release.
The prisons bureau declined to comment on Mr. Silver’s status.
“For privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not discuss release plans for any inmate to include furlough status where applicable,” the bureau said in a statement.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/04/nyregion/sheldon-silver-prison-release.html