Shortey sentenced to 15 years in prison

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A former Republican state senator in Oklahoma was sentenced to 15 years in prison on a child sex trafficking charge, KOCO reports.

Ralph Shortey was due in federal court in Oklahoma City Monday.  Shortey will also have 10 years of supervision once he is released from pirson.

He could have been sentenced to as much as life in prison.

Shortey pleaded guilty in November in exchange for prosecutors dropping three child pornography charges against him. He said the plea deal was in the best interest of him and his family.

The 36-year-old Shortey was arrested in March 2017 after police found him in a suburban Oklahoma City motel room with a then-17-year-old boy. He resigned shortly after the arrest.