Charles Pugh sentenced to up 15 years in jail

(WJBK) - Former Detroit City Council president Charles Pugh was sentenced to five and a half to 15 years in prison Wednesday.

Pugh, also a former FOX 2 anchor, pleaded guilty to two counts of third degree criminal sexual conduct after admitting to having sex with a 14-year-old boy.

He accepted a plea deal and in exchange, three rape charges were dropped -- charges that could have sent him to prison for life if convicted on them.

Pugh admitted to having sex with an underage boy from 2003 to 2005, while making a name for himself as a FOX 2 anchor and eventually landing his city council president seat in 2009.

During his sentencing Wednesday, he asked for forgiveness from his family and the City of Detroit.

Pugh said he was 31 years old when he started the inappropriate relationship with the boy he was supposed to be mentoring.

Before he was sentenced, the attorney representing the victim read a letter written by the victim's mother.

She wrote that Pugh preyed on her son because she was a single parent, calling him the monster that she warned her son against.

She said Pugh has a sickness and he needs to come to terms with that.

Pugh responded saying that he was young and made poor choices, saying counseling will do him good and he looks forward to receiving the help while incarcerated.

"I fully understand the gravity of my actions," he said in court.

Another condition of his plea deal is that he becomes a permanent addition to the Michigan sex offender registry upon his release from prison.