Ex-MN Senator Eichorn Gets Less Prison Time Than Feds Wanted In Sex Sting Case

ST. PAUL, MN — A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced former Minnesota state Sen. Justin Eichorn to 16 months in prison, 18 months after the Grand Rapids Republican was arrested in a Bloomington sting while trying to meet someone he believed was a 17-year-old girl for paid sex.

The sentence, which also includes five years of supervised release, falls within the 15 to 21 months called for under federal sentencing guidelines.

Prosecutors had sought five years in prison followed by a lifetime of supervision. Eichorn's defense team had asked for time served plus five years of supervised release, KAXE reported.

Addressing the court, Eichorn, 42, gave a lengthy apology to his family and former constituents in his first public remarks about the case since his arrest, the Star Tribune reported.

"I accept full responsibility for what I have done. I have no one to blame but myself," he said.

U.S. District Chief Judge Eric Tostrud said Eichorn's former state Senate seat played no role in the sentence and that he wanted to deter conduct he called "all too common and deeply troubling."

Eichorn's attorneys had argued throughout the case that he was singled out for federal prosecution because he was a sitting senator.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David Classen told the court that "good fortune is the only reason that a child was not victimized."

Defense attorney Brent Hannafan objected to the five-year request as greater than necessary.

Eichorn pleaded guilty in May to attempted possession of child pornography, a lesser charge that let him avoid the 10-year mandatory minimum attached to his original count of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.

During his plea hearing, he admitted responding to an online prostitution ad in March 2025 and continuing to message an undercover officer after she repeatedly told him she was 17. He asked her for photos and drove to Bloomington to meet her, where he was arrested on March 17, 2025.

Tostrud denied Eichorn's request to remain free after his plea, and he has been in custody since May.

Eichorn, first elected to the Senate in 2016, resigned days after his arrest.

Eichorn tried to have his wife clean his St. Paul apartment of a gun, laptop, and cell phone before FBI agents could search it, according to federal prosecutors.

Divorce Case Remains Open

Eichorn's criminal case is not his only unresolved matter in court. His wife, Brittany Eichorn, filed for divorce in Itasca County on March 24, 2025, one week after his arrest.

The case, filed as a dissolution with children, meaning the divorce has not been finalized.

Eichorn and Brittany had four children together.