ANCHORAGE—U.S. Attorney Karen Loeffler announced that former Anchorage Corrections Officer Patrick Sherman, 48, was sentenced to one year and one day imprisonment, followed by three years’ supervised release. U.S. District Court Judge Timothy M. Burgess imposed the sentence upon Sherman.
In his guilty plea, Sherman admitted that in 2008, an accomplice was incarcerated at the Anchorage Correctional Complex (ACC). During this incarceration, the accomplice and Brandi Barnes distributed controlled substances, along with syringes, within ACC. Sherman, also known as “2.5,” was a corrections officer at ACC. On numerous occasions, Sherman received pre-packaged controlled substances from Brandi Barnes and others and delivered the narcotics to an accomplice for re-sale within the jail to inmates. Sherman admitted that he was paid by Barnes for each delivery the he made to the unindicted co-conspirator. Brandi Barnes was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment earlier this year for her roles in this and a larger drug trafficking conspiracy.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Russo, who represented the United States at sentencing, requested a sentence of one year, which was above the applicable United States Sentencing Guidelines. Sherman, citing his status as a former corrections officer, requested a sentence that included no jail time. Judge Burgess agreed with the government’s request, citing the seriousness of Sherman’s conduct and the need to treat all equally under the law, regardless of one’s status as a former law enforcement officer. Judge Burgess also stressed the need to deter other corrections officers from engaging in similar conduct.
The case was the result of an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration-Anchorage District Office and the Alaska State Troopers, Mat-Su Narcotics Unit; the investigation was supported by numerous agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Anchorage Police Department; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; and the Anchorage Airport Police.
