Former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver sentenced to 12 years in prison

Former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was sentenced to 12 years in prison Tuesday for federal corruption charges. Silver, 72, was found guilty on all counts, including taking millions in bribes from real-estate and medical interests, at trial last November.

Silver was in power in the state for more than two decades. "I failed the people of New York. There is no question about it," the Democrat wrote in an April letter to the judge, as reported by The Associated Press. "What I have done has hurt the Assembly, and New York, and my constituents terribly, and I regret that more than I can possibly express."

More than 30 New York state lawmakers have left office surrounded by criminal or ethical allegations since 2000, with Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara calling the state government a "cauldron of corruption." Assemblyman William Boyland, Jr., was sentenced to 14 years for corruption late last year.

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"Because of me, the government has been ridiculed. I let my peers down, I let the people of the state down, and I let down my constituents — the people of lower Manhattan that I live among and fought for. They deserve better," Silver wrote.