Slim M. Lewis, the man accused of forging election petitions in his run for Bradford City mayor, will serve time in McKean County Jail.

Lewis, 44, was sentenced Thursday before Judge Christopher Hauser in McKean County Court.

Lewis will serve six months to one year in McKean County Jail, followed by one year of consecutive probation.

He will also complete 50 hours of community service and undergo a mental health evaluation and go through an anger management program. He is to have no contact with his codefendants, with the exception of his wife.

Lewis pleaded guilty in November to misdemeanor charges of forgery-unauthorized act in writing and false signatures/statements.

When Lewis was seeking the Democratic nomination for mayor in the May 2019 primary election, he and three others forged signatures on nomination petitions. He forged at least 17 signatures on nomination petitions, according to court records filed at the time of his arrest.

Lewis was the last of the four defendants in the case to be sentenced. He was charged along with Josef Godfrey, Nikki Elliott and his wife, Lena Lewis. All four pleaded guilty.

In response to an assertion by Lewis that he lives with several family members who rely on him financially, Hauser included a condition allowing Lena Lewis to provide information proving significant financial hardship. The judge would then consider an early release to house arrest for Slim Lewis.

Warren attorney Elizabeth Feronti, who is representing Lewis, explained that he is worried his family will become homeless if he is incarcerated for six months.

Prior to sentencing, Hauser dealt with a request from Slim Lewis to remove Feronti as his counsel. The judge explained he first heard of an issue in January and denied a request at that time to remove her as counsel.

On Thursday, Lewis complained that he was not allowed to attend criminal conferences in the case.

“I had just met her. I shouldn’t put all my faith in someone I had just met,” said Lewis.

After more discussion, Hauser asked Lewis if he thought Feronti did anything “inappropriate” in regard to the plea he entered into.

Lewis said he felt there “could have been a different plea for me if I was able to attend the conferences.” He said he did not deny doing any of the actions to which he pleaded guilty; he just felt he could have negotiated a different sentence.

District Attorney Stephanie Vettenburg-Shaffer disagreed with Lewis’s suggestion that the plea could have been different.

Hauser went on to describe Lewis’s “extensive criminal history” that influenced what sentence was negotiated.

Hauser explained that Lewis’s history included convictions of disorderly conduct, theft by deception, burglary, criminal mischief, criminal trespassing and bad checks and an entry into the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program for forgery allegations.

Looking at all the factors, Hauser said he thinks the sentence offered is “fair,” and noted that Lewis “perhaps might have gotten more” if it wasn’t a binding plea agreement and Hauser had more discretion. He added that he could have rejected the plea agreement but chose not to.

Hauser said he did not think Feronti did anything “inappropriate or improper” and told Lewis that if he was not happy with her representative, he could file a complaint against her in disciplinary court.

“I don’t have any personal issues with Mr. Lewis. He keeps creating additional conflicts,” said Feronti.

She explained that regarding criminal conferences, there was nothing for Lewis to be present for, as she and Shaffer negotiated the plea via email and phone. She noted that she had multiple lengthy conversations with Lewis, too.

When Hauser asked Lewis if he wanted to withdraw his plea, Lewis said no.

In her comments, Shaffer explained that Lewis took advantage of all the people whose names he signed to his petition without their permission.

One woman who submitted a victim impact statement wrote that she thought to herself, “how could I be so dumb,” and the situation “caused her to think about changing parties or removing herself from voting altogether,” said Shaffer.

“Do I accept the fact that I broke the law and I should be punished? Yes. Am I asking for leniency? Yes. Have I been granted it in the past? Yes. But I know I can change,” Lewis said, explaining that he has changed in the past.

“Things that I’ve done, I don’t do. I try to steer straight,” he said. According to Lewis he does not do all “stupid stuff I’ve done before. Am I sorry? Yes, extremely. I hurt two people that I consider my friends.”

He expressed regret at hurting his wife, “the one person that’s been there for me, that’s stood behind me, that stood there with me.” Lewis said he “can’t take back what I did. But I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to make up for it.”