NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Suspended attorney and former state Sen. Brian Kelsey's legal team filed to withdraw his federal guilty plea, writing that Kelsey's "inexperience with the criminal justice system" contributed to the plea agreement.
According to court documents, Kelsey, 44, admitted that he conspired to and did secretly and unlawfully funnel money from multiple sources, including his own Tennessee State Senate campaign committee, to his authorized federal campaign committee when he ran for Congress in 2016.
Kelsey and his co-conspirators, including Joshua Smith, also caused a national political organization to make illegal, excessive contributions to Kelsey’s federal campaign committee by secretly coordinating with the organization on advertisements supporting Kelsey’s federal candidacy and causing false reports of contributions and expenditures to be filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Now, Kelsey wants to take that guilty plea back based on that inexperience, despite serving in the legislature's judiciary committee during his time as a lawmaker.
In the motion, Kelsey's attorney cites his father's death and raising twins and a toddler as part of the reason he entered into the plea agreement "hastily." His attorney also wrote that Kelsey didn't commit any federal campaign finance crimes.
A motion has also been filed to set back Kelsey's sentencing date until this current motion for this withdrawal plea is resolved.
