Krista Gets a (Small) Christmas Present

Barton Watson's widow, Krista Kotlarz-Watson, was sentenced this morning by Chief Judge Robert Holmes Bell in Grand Rapids. Her plea bargain was that that the prosecutors would ask for ten years and she could argue for less. She received a sentence of seven years, even less than the 7 1/2 years that Jim Horton got from the same judge.

Basically, Krista got the best sentence she could have reasonably expected. Whatever she might think of the sentence, she got lucky. Here is how it happened.

First, the federal sentencing guidelines are a significant factor in any sentence. At one time they were mandatory, but since a recent Supreme Court decision, they are only "advisory." As a result, judges can deviate from them, but rarely do so, at least not very much.

The guideline sentence recommendation is based on a complicated formula. The federal probation officer who prepares the pre-sentence report does the initial calculation, but the judge has the final say.

In this case, the probation officer scored Krista higher than Jim Horton. Krista's attorney objected, saying they pleaded guilty to the same crime so the starting score should be the same. The judge appeared to agree with this argument, so the basic term of incarceration was 87-108 months.

Next, the probation officer added to this basic term because Krista was found to be a "manager or supervisor" of the scheme. On top of that, the sentence recommendation was further enhanced by a finding that Krista obstructed justice by withdrawing $20,000 of the secret money that Horton transferred a few days after the raid.

Krista objected to both of these enhancements, arguing that she "did not have enough knowledge or the ability to plan and organize this fraud. She was a 'soldier' that performed the tasks assigned to her just like the others involved in the fraud with the exception of Barton Watson and Mr. Horton."

Likewise, she argued that just because Horton transferred the money into her account doesn't make her responsible for that act, and that she did not obstruct justice by hiding money.

The judge appeared to reject her arguments, saying that she "represented herself as being in charge," and noting that the $20,000 she withdrew was never recovered. But despite these stern words, the judge gave her a mere 84 months, less than what the guidelines recommended even without the enhancements.

Still, seven years is a long time. Krista will not get to see her daughter grow up, and mommy will be a stranger when she gets out. Whether it was all worth it, seven years in prison for twelve years of luxury with Barton, that's a judgement only Krista can make. Krista remains free on bail until she is told which prison to report to, probably within the month.

Krista's lawyer described her situation like this:

• "Ms Kotlarz is very aware of her conduct and how she assisted in the large fraud. However, there is no doubt that she was not the 'brains' behind this fraud. She was the wife of a diabolical, evil individual that used others to feed his substantial ego. As it pertains to material items, Ms.Kotlarz did benefit from this fraud. However, in all other areas that relate to quality of life she has paid a tremendous price. She was mentally and physically abused throughout her time with Mr.Watson. She became an alcoholic to numb her pain. Her husband, Mr. Watson, killed himself and left her and others to pay for his greed and grieve for his loss."

I would take issue with part of this statement. Barton Watson could have stayed overseas and possibly avoided extradition for years. Over $5 million dollars are unaccounted for, and are probably still hidden somewhere in Asia. Barton returned to the USA after the raid so Krista would not have to face the collapse alone.

Perhaps Jim Horton best summed up the role Krista played when he said, "Krista was the only person who could have stopped Barton." This may have been her greatest crime of all.