Ex-Philly District Attorney Seth Williams Released From Prison Early

Former Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams was released from federal prison early after successfully completing a drug rehab program.

Williams was recently transferred to a residential facility at an undisclosed location in Philadelphia, according to Robert Zauzmer, the Chief of Appeals of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Williams was sentenced on Oct. 24, 2017, to five years in prison after being convicted for travel and use of interstate facilities to promote bribery.

While in custody, Williams participated in the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP), the most intensive substance abuse rehabilitation program in the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), according to Zauzmer.

Williams received a one-year reduction due to successfully completing the program.

“Williams’ sentence is therefore presently scheduled to end on September 30, 2020, and he was recently transferred to community confinement as is customary for inmates nearing the end of a term of imprisonment,” Zauzmer wrote.

Prior to his conviction, a nearly two-year investigation into Williams' financial affairs resulted in a wide-ranging indictment in which he was charged with accepting cash and gifts, fraudulently using thousands of dollars from his campaign fund for personal expenses, misusing city vehicles and misappropriating money intended to fund his mother's nursing home care.

Two weeks into his June 2017 trial, amid damaging testimony about how he accepted perks such as a lavish Caribbean vacation and a Jaguar convertible, Williams pleaded guilty to a single count of accepting a bribe from a businessman who admitted giving him a $3,000 sofa and thousands of dollars in cash payments.

He had been charged with 29 counts of bribery, extortion and fraud. Although 28 counts were dismissed, prosecutors said Williams admitted he committed all the conduct.