Lt. William White,head of the New Haven police narcotics unit pleaded guilty

"When a police officer such as Mr. White turns into a criminal such as those he devoted his life to enforcing the law against, kids lose their hero. The public loses its trust in the police. The police department loses its reputation and judges and jurors get increasingly skeptical of the sworn statement that are given to them," Arterton said. "The bottom line is it was a cop on the take." Former Lt. William White, 64, pleaded guilty last October in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to commit bribery and theft of government property. The 39-year police veteran apologized to his family, the court and prosecutors that he worked with over the years before U.S. District Court Judge Janet Bond Arterton sentenced him to 38 months and more than $45,000 in restitution and fines.
"I just hope everybody some way, some time, can dig deep down in their heart and forgive me for what I've done."White admitted taking $10,000 from bondsmen in return for capturing certain fugitives. In their sentencing memorandum, prosecutors said the arrangement "resulted in a situation in which a wealthy person was able to buy a cop." He has been free on $2 million bond since his arrest. White is scheduled to start serving his sentence on June 10. The bondsmen, Robert Jacobs, 80, of Branford and his sons, 47-year-old Philip Jacobs and 49-year-old Paul Jacobs of Woodbridge, have each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery. White also admitted stealing $27,500 planted by the FBI in the trunk of a car, and another $1,000 planted at a house. He split the money with another officer, who was working undercover for the FBI, authorities said. White was told the money in the car belonged to a drug dealer. He took the money, prosecutors said, even though he had expressed concerns that it could get a female informant killed. The informant turned out to be fictitious. Prosecutors said he put his own greed above the law.
White and his lawyers had argued for leniency citing his contributions over the years and the effects of a personal tragedy. More than 100 letters of support were submitted to the judge on his behalf. His wife, Nancy White, was among several supporters who spoke in court on Monday. "I have never known a single instance where he has turned away anyone in need. He was never off duty," she said. His lawyers also argued that White suffered from post traumatic stress disorder, the result of the death of a son at the hands of drug dealers. Tyler White was killed in Bridgeport in 1994 by gang members who were targeting an acquaintance. White's attorneys called the killing "an unbelievably cruel twist of fate" given White's work against gangs. White was devastated and felt guilty about his son's murder, but never sought counseling, his attorneys said. His wife said he became obsessed with caring for others in an attempt to deal with his guilt, sleeping in his clothes to prepare for emergencies and frequently having nightmares. But prosecutors argued there is no evidence linking those events to White's criminal behavior.
"The damage is that people have a reason not to trust police officers because look at what Billy White did," Acting U.S. Attorney Nora Dannehy said.
White has been credited with helping dismantle violent drug gangs that plagued the city in the 1990s, an effort that won national praise.
"It is not an overstatement to submit that there has never been a member of the New Haven Police Department who made a more positive impact on New Haven than Billy White," his attorneys wrote in court papers.
The judge said she took White's positive contributions into consideration and opted not to sentence him near the top of the guidelines, which was 46 months in prison. But she noted that because of his arrest, citizens lost their trust in those sworn to protect them.

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