Former Tennessee House staffer Cothren sentenced to 30 months in prison

Former legislative staffer Cade Cothren with Ava Korby outside the Fred D. Thompson Federal Courthouse before his sentencing on 16 counts of corruption. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)

A former House staffer was sentenced Tuesday to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay a $25,000 fine for his role in a kickback scheme using the state’s constituent mailer program.

Cade Cothren, who resigned as chief of staff to former Speaker Glen Casada in 2019, will also be required to remain on probation for one year after serving his time in federal prison. Attorneys for Cothren said they would appeal the convictions from a four-week jury trial in April and May.

Casada’s sentencing hearing was postponed until Sept. 23 because of the length of time it took to go through Cothren’s sentencing Tuesday.

U.S. District Court Judge Eli Richardson meted out the punishment after wading through a litany of objections Tuesday by the defense as federal prosecutors sought a stiffer punishment.

Former Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada, ex-aide, guilty in federal corruption case

Casada and Cothren were convicted of setting up a secret company called Phoenix Solutions that tapped into the state’s postage and printing program that provides House members $3,000 a year for constituent mailers. Casada and former Rep. Robin Smith, who pleaded guilty and testified against the pair, steered lawmakers’ business to Phoenix Solutions, which was secretly run by Cothren with the front name of “Matthew Phoenix.”

Richardson found that the sentencing wouldn’t involve $158,000 the trio made from work for the House Republican Caucus and campaigns for individual lawmakers. The judge, though, determined that Cothren used “intricate” money laundering in an effort to cover up the trio’s scheme.

Testimony in the trial showed that Cothren couldn’t be connected to the company because other lawmakers wouldn’t want to do business with him after he resigned from his legislative post over a racist and sexist texting scandal. 

Casada later resigned from the House speakership when the Republican held a no-confidence vote based on the texting scandal, heavy-handed leadership and power moves such as creation of a “bill kill” list.