Former Deputy Detroit Police chief gets year in prison for towing bribe

A former Detroit deputy police chief who took money from a city towing contractor has been sentenced to a year and a day in prison.

The 366-day sentence means Celia Washington can get credit for good behavior and actually serve less than a year in custody. Federal prosecutors were seeking a two-year prison term Wednesday.

Washington served as the police department's legal adviser, responsible for overseeing towing companies that remove cars seized by police. She admits knowing that Gasper Fiore was trying to influence her with $3,000. She said she needed a loan.

She pleaded guilty to taking thousands of dollars from the tow truck king. But the feds say Washington also get a Ford Fusion worth $5,000 and he picked up the $800 bar tab for her birthday party in 2016. 

The government says Fiore covered an $800 bar tab at Washington's birthday party and also arranged a car for her. Investigators say free oil changes and engine repairs came from another tow company owner.

The judge scolded her in court for betraying the public's trust as the city tries to move past it's old fraud cases. The judge did agree with Washington's lawyer that the feds couldn't prove that Washington got a free car from Fiore. 

Instead of giving her the two-year sentence that the feds asked for he gave her a year and one day in prison.

Federal prisons give convicts credit for good behavior, meaning Washington will spend less than a year in prison.