Former Rutherford County Sheriff's Major To Be Sentenced In July

NASHVILLE, TN — The fallout from the resignation of a Middle Tennessee federal judge will delay the sentencing of a former Rutherford County Sheriff's Department major for two months.

Terry McBurney, who pleaded guilty to a variety of immigration related crimes in the wake of the JailCigs investigation that took down Sheriff Robert Arnold, was scheduled to be sentenced Friday, but will now have to wait until mid-July to learn his fate.

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McBurney pleaded guilty February 2 in front of U.S. District Court Judge Kevin Sharp, who then scheduled his sentencing, but Sharp resigned from the bench April 15 and the Middle District has been using judges from other federal courts to keep dockets manageable. Judge Sean F. Cox of the Eastern District of Michigan has taken over McBurney's case and rescheduled his hearing for July 19.

McBurney, an immigrant from Ireland, pleaded guilty to two counts related to lying about his citizenship status and falsifying documents to continue being a law enforcement officer . He was also pleaded guilty to seven counts of wire fraud, because he was paid for jobs he was ineligible for because he was not yet a U.S. citizen. McBurney lied about his naturalization status during his job application process; he has since become an American citizen.

Image via Rutherford County Sheriff's Department