Former Plum Springs Mayor Shedrick Johnson was ordered to serve five years on probation after he admitted to using a city debit card for personal expenses.

Johnson, 45, was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court in Bowling Green, having pleaded guilty in January to a count of wire fraud.

Federal prosecutors said he withdrew funds from a city debit card for his personal benefit, resulting in a loss of $38,168.96 to the city.

An indictment said the illegal conduct took place between March 23, 2020, and Nov. 30, 2022.

“I stand before you today a guilty man. I’ve hurt the ones I love the most,” Johnson said when addressing the court at his sentencing hearing. “People trusted me to be an honorable mayor and I let them down … I struggle to forgive myself every day for everything I’ve done.”

Johnson’s attorney, Alan Simpson, said that the former mayor found himself in financial trouble, mentioning specifically that he owed more on a car loan than the value of the car.

“Instead of turning to his family for help, he did what he did,” Simpson said.

When Johnson learned of potential criminal consequences for his actions, he contacted Simpson and then confessed to law enforcement, Simpson said.

Johnson said he notified Plum Springs Commissioner Mitch Rickman and current Mayor Frankie Minton of the missing funds prior to leaving office.

The former mayor, who served in the office from 2018-22, has repaid the money he acknowledged taking.

“He has been beyond cooperative with law enforcement and the United States (Attorney’s Office),” Simpson said.

“He was in a desperate financial situation and he did some desperate things. This should not define him.”

Rickman and Plum Springs Commissioner William Compton briefly addressed the court at the sentencing hearing Thursday.

“It’s my responsibility as a commissioner to take care of the finances of Plum Springs and I failed in my duty,” Rickman said, going on to ask that Johnson be probated.

“I think probation is what I’d like to see. Anything further only hurts the people that care about him.”

Federal sentencing guidelines, which factor in a person’s prior criminal history and the current offense for which a defendant was convicted, set out a penalty range of 4-10 months in prison for Johnson.

Both Simpson and Assistant U.S. Attorney Madison Sewell recommended probation, citing Johnson’s lack of criminal history and prompt acceptance of responsibility and repayment of stolen money as factors.

U.S. District Court Chief Judge Greg Stivers agreed, saying that imprisonment “would be digging the hole deeper” for the former mayor.

“Certainly Mr. Johnson is not going to leave this matter unscathed,” Stivers said in court. “He’s been held up to public shame as he should be and he’s a convicted felon, and that’s never going away.

“On the other hand, he’s got the support of his family … going forward, he can lead the kind of life that will help him re-earn the respect he’s lost.”