SAN ANTONIO – In a one-page order issued Wednesday, state district judge Velia Meza denied former attorney Ted Roberts’ motion seeking judicial clemency, which would have restored his civil rights.
”I don’t have much to say, as I am in a state of shock,” Roberts said about the order.
In 2007, Roberts and his wife, Mary, who was also an attorney, set up a blackmail scheme targeting four prominent San Antonio men, according to testimony in Roberts’ trial on theft by deception charges.
Former attorney convicted in sexual blackmail scheme seeks clemency
According to testimony, Mary Roberts would have intimate relationships with the men, and her husband would then threaten the men with lawsuits exposing the affairs unless the men would contribute to a charity of Roberts’ choice.
But there was no charity, trial testimony revealed. Instead, the couple would keep the money, estimated to be over $150,000.
“There was evidence that I might have threatened in-person,” Ted Roberts testified during a hearing last week. “All lawsuits are threatening, and I can’t imagine that being a crime.”
Ted Roberts served six months of a 5-year sentence before he was granted shock probation. Mary Roberts was given probation.