Three more members of a Philadelphia-area ironworkers union have pleaded guilty to charges in an alleged campaign to coerce building contractors into hiring union members over nonunion competition.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Tuesday's pleas by 43-year-old Christopher Prophet, 62-year-old William O'Donnell and 45-year-old Richard Ritchie came moments before jury selection in their cases and are contingent upon approval of a plea agreement.
But U.S. District Judge Michael Baylson cautioned each defendant that he couldn't guarantee that he would accept the sentences until after the trial of union leader Joseph Dougherty, the last remaining defendant of the dozen people charged.
The proposed agreements on charges including RICO conspiracy call for a five-year sentence for Prophet, a four-year sentence for Ritchie and six months on house arrest for O'Donnell.
