Ex-Nicholson mayor pleads guilty to theft; DA says he'll ask for jail time

JEFFERSON, Ga. (AP) A former Nicholson mayor has pleaded guilty to stealing tax money to pave his mother's driveway, and the prosecutor says he will ask for at least a year in prison.

Piedmont Circuit Assistant District Attorney Paul Trifiletti says Ronnie Maxwell of Nicholson pleaded guilty last week to one count of felony theft, and will be sentenced after the probation office completes a pre-sentencing report.

Trifiletti tells the Athens Banner-Herald that he will ask for eight years one in prison and seven on probation plus a fine and restitution of $10,600.

Maxwell was charged in Jackson County Superior Court after his arrest in August 2015.

He ran for mayor after he was charged, but Jan Webster beat him by a vote of 160 to 99.