Former area legislator heads to federal prison in corruption case

Former state legislator Sean Eberhart, who represented part of Bartholomew County is heading to federal prison for more than a year.

He pled guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit honest services fraud in a gambling corruption case. The Republican from Shelbyville accepted a job with gambling company Spectacle Entertainment for at least $350,000 in exchange for voting for a bill from which Spectacle would benefit.

Court documents say an unnamed Spectacle executive came to Eberhart with the proposal.

On top of the prison sentence, Eberhart was also fined $25,000 and he will also have to pay another $60,000 in restitution.

Eberhart’s district included northeastern Bartholomew County including Hope and Hartsville. He served in the statehouse from 2007 until 2022, when he chose not to seek reelection. He previously served on the Shelby County Council.

Eberhart apologized at his sentencing and said he was “truly, deeply sorry for what I did.”

Authorities say that Spectacle Entertainment wanted to purchase the state licenses for two casinos on the Lake Michigan waterfront and to relocate those casinos to other areas. The federal charges accuse Eberhart of accepting a promise of the in exchange for supporting the license change and casino moves. The legislation reduced the license change fees from $100 million to $20 million and also provided tax incentives benefiting the company.

Story courtesy of Network Indiana