Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert is being sentenced to 15 months in prison for making illegal bank withdrawals. Hastert had pleaded guilty to the withdrawals, which he made to cover up sex abuse accusations. A federal judge in Chicago also said the 74-year-old Hastert will get two years' supervised release and must pay a 250-thousand-dollar fine. Hastert is accused of paying nearly two-million-dollars in hush money to cover up sexual abuse he committed decades ago while he was a high school wresting coach in Yorkville.
During his sentencing hearing, Hastert admitted to sexually abusing members of the wresting team and apologized for mistreating the boys.
While imposing the sentence, Federal Judge Thomas Durkin called the former U.S. Speaker "a serial child molester." The longest-serving Republican speaker in history has not been charged with sex abuse because the statute of limitations expired years ago. The judge also ordered Hastert to undergo sex-offender treatment.
