A federal judge reduced the sentence of former Tennessee State Representative Robin Smith from prison time to probation, months after President Donald Trump granted her co-conspirators pardons.
On Monday, the same day Smith had been scheduled to report to a federal prison in Alderson, West Virginia, by 2 p.m., U.S. District Judge Eli Richardson modified the former state lawmaker’s eight-month prison sentence to one year of probation, sparing her from incarceration.
BREAKING: Robin Smith re-sentenced to one year of probation. No jail time. She will not report today. pic.twitter.com/1mnP2wsXFS
— RoseFirm, PLLC (@RoseLawOffices) January 5, 2026
The judge’s decision comes after Smith testified for the government in a high-profile public corruption case involving former House Speaker Glen Casada and his chief of staff, Cade Cothren.
Smith played a central role in the prosecution, cooperating with federal authorities and detailing how she, Casada, and Cothren created a covert political consulting company to secure taxpayer-funded constituent mailer work, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Her testimony helped secure the convictions of Casada and Cothren, who were both sentenced to prison terms in September.
Casada was sentenced to three years in federal prison, while Cothren was sentenced to 2.5 years.
Further, Casada was ordered to pay a $30,000 fine and to forfeit $4,643.60 in proceeds while Cothren was ordered to pay a $25,000 fine. Both men were also sentenced to be on supervised release for one year following their terms of imprisonment.
However, weeks after Smith, who pleaded guilty to one count of honest services wire fraud in 2022, was sentenced in late October, Trump pardoned Casada and Cothren, eliminating their prison sentences and leaving Smith as the only participant facing incarceration.
Smith’s attorneys argued that sending her to prison under those circumstances would be a “manifest injustice,” a position Richardson ultimately supported with Monday’s decision, noting it could not identify another federal case where a cooperating conspirator served prison time after equally culpable defendants were pardoned, according to the Associated Press.
The outlet notes that Smith has said she continues to seek a presidential pardon and maintains “faith in this process.”
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Incentivizing elected officials to commit crimes.