Updated: February 18, 2011, 4:22 PM ET
Karen Cunagin Sypher sentenced
Associated Press
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A judge has sentenced a woman convicted of threatening to reveal a sexual tryst with Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino unless he paid her millions to more than seven years in prison.
Karen Cunagin Sypher sobbed during a hearing Friday before being sentenced to 87 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Charles R. Simpson III. He also ordered two years of supervised release after she serves her prison term.
Sypher
Sypher was convicted in August of extortion, lying to the FBI and retaliation against a witness. The case centered on evidence that Sypher tried to get Pitino to pay her to keep silent about their one-night stand at a Louisville restaurant in 2003.
A jury convicted Sypher in August of extortion, lying to the FBI and retaliation against a witness. The charges carried a maximum sentence of 26 years, but federal sentencing guidelines called for a shorter term.
Since being convicted, Sypher has hired new attorneys and accused the judge, prosecutors, her former attorneys and Pitino of taking part in a conspiracy to ensure she was found guilty.
Salacious details about Pitino's and Sypher's relationship -- from descriptions of their one-night stand and a resulting abortion to accusations of betrayal and rape -- emerged throughout the investigation and Sypher's trial.
Pitino, a married father of five, testified during trial that he had sex with Sypher -- who then was known as Karen Wise -- in the empty restaurant after she whispered to him and then unzipped his pants. Pitino said the sex lasted "15 seconds" and was "unfortunate."
The testimony subjected Pitino to questioning from both prosecutors and defense attorneys that aired intimate details of the brief encounter and subsequent interactions between the two.
Sypher called Pitino a few weeks later and said she was pregnant. Tim Sypher, a longtime Pitino aide and now Karen Sypher's ex-husband, testified he arranged for an abortion and paid for it with $3,000 Pitino had given Karen Sypher. He testified that the two met when Pitino asked him for help after she said she was pregnant.
Pitino said he thought the money was for counseling and medical needs, but Sypher later said she had an abortion.
After being charged with extortion, Karen Sypher claimed Pitino raped her. She filed a complaint with Louisville police, but Jefferson County Commonwealth's Attorney David Stengel dismissed the allegations as meritless.
Two witnesses testified that Sypher traded sexual favors for help with the extortion plot.
Although Sypher never testified, jurors heard her version of events when prosecutors played a never-broadcast TV interview in which she claimed Pitino raped her.
Although some witnesses described Sypher as persistent and flirty that night, no one else testified to witnessing the sex.
Pitino has coached at Louisville since 2001. He has coached three different schools to the Final Four -- Louisville, Providence and Kentucky, where he won a national title. Along with the Boston Celtics, Pitino also coached professionally with the New York Knicks.
Karen Cunagin Sypher sentenced
Associated Press
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A judge has sentenced a woman convicted of threatening to reveal a sexual tryst with Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino unless he paid her millions to more than seven years in prison.
Karen Cunagin Sypher sobbed during a hearing Friday before being sentenced to 87 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Charles R. Simpson III. He also ordered two years of supervised release after she serves her prison term.
Sypher
Sypher was convicted in August of extortion, lying to the FBI and retaliation against a witness. The case centered on evidence that Sypher tried to get Pitino to pay her to keep silent about their one-night stand at a Louisville restaurant in 2003.
A jury convicted Sypher in August of extortion, lying to the FBI and retaliation against a witness. The charges carried a maximum sentence of 26 years, but federal sentencing guidelines called for a shorter term.
Since being convicted, Sypher has hired new attorneys and accused the judge, prosecutors, her former attorneys and Pitino of taking part in a conspiracy to ensure she was found guilty.
Salacious details about Pitino's and Sypher's relationship -- from descriptions of their one-night stand and a resulting abortion to accusations of betrayal and rape -- emerged throughout the investigation and Sypher's trial.
Pitino, a married father of five, testified during trial that he had sex with Sypher -- who then was known as Karen Wise -- in the empty restaurant after she whispered to him and then unzipped his pants. Pitino said the sex lasted "15 seconds" and was "unfortunate."
The testimony subjected Pitino to questioning from both prosecutors and defense attorneys that aired intimate details of the brief encounter and subsequent interactions between the two.
Sypher called Pitino a few weeks later and said she was pregnant. Tim Sypher, a longtime Pitino aide and now Karen Sypher's ex-husband, testified he arranged for an abortion and paid for it with $3,000 Pitino had given Karen Sypher. He testified that the two met when Pitino asked him for help after she said she was pregnant.
Pitino said he thought the money was for counseling and medical needs, but Sypher later said she had an abortion.
After being charged with extortion, Karen Sypher claimed Pitino raped her. She filed a complaint with Louisville police, but Jefferson County Commonwealth's Attorney David Stengel dismissed the allegations as meritless.
Two witnesses testified that Sypher traded sexual favors for help with the extortion plot.
Although Sypher never testified, jurors heard her version of events when prosecutors played a never-broadcast TV interview in which she claimed Pitino raped her.
Although some witnesses described Sypher as persistent and flirty that night, no one else testified to witnessing the sex.
Pitino has coached at Louisville since 2001. He has coached three different schools to the Final Four -- Louisville, Providence and Kentucky, where he won a national title. Along with the Boston Celtics, Pitino also coached professionally with the New York Knicks.
