SAN DIEGO (AP) - A retired Navy rear admiral pleaded guilty in federal court to a misdemeanor charge of violating conflict-of-interest laws.
Jose L. Betancourt, who is currently a top official with the San Diego Unified School District , was hired by a company trying to win business with the Navy less than a year after a one-year “cooling off” period required by federal law for some government officials.
Betancourt was sentenced Wednesday to one year's probation and fined $15,000.
He apologized and said he had no plans to quit his $185,000-per-year post as the school district's chief administrative officer.
"This matter had nothing to do with my employment with the district, or with the Navy," he said after his court appearance. "I'm extremely embarrassed it happened."
Betancourt retired from the Navy in October 2005, after a 33-year career that included commanding a destroyer during the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
In December 2005, he became chairman of The Accela Group, a military contractor that trumpeted his appointment in news releases.
School district Superintendent Carl Cohn said he would not ask Betancourt to step down and called him a "stellar employee," but school board member John de Beck said Betancourt should resign.
