JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The Mississippi Court of Appeals is tossing out the embezzlement conviction of a man who used to run a downtown Jackson business organization.
The Clarion Ledger reports the court ruled Tuesday in favor of Ben Allen, a former Jackson City Council member who worked for Downtown Jackson Partners.
Allen was convicted of a single count of embezzlement in 2017 in connection with his wife’s cellphone bill. He received a five-year suspended sentence.
Appeals Court Judge Virginia Carlton wrote that evidence did not support a conviction. A state auditor’s office employee testified at trial that he found no proof Allen embezzled money related to the charges in an indictment.
Downtown Jackson Partners board attorney Robert L. Gibbs testified that Allen reimbursed the organization for his wife’s portion of a cellphone bill.
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