{"id":2602786,"date":"2026-05-14T14:58:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T18:58:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/former-newsom-chief-of-staff-pleads-guilty-on-corruption-charges\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T15:00:43","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T19:00:43","slug":"former-newsom-chief-of-staff-pleads-guilty-on-corruption-charges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/former-newsom-chief-of-staff-pleads-guilty-on-corruption-charges\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Newsom chief of staff pleads guilty on corruption charges"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fformer-newsom-chief-of-staff-pleads-guilty-on-corruption-charges%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2602786&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Dana Williamson, Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s former chief of staff and a prior adviser to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, pleaded guilty in federal court to corrupt-related charges. Prosecutors said the case involved a scheme that siphoned about $225,000 from Becerra\u2019s dormant campaign account for personal use, using arrangements meant to conceal the transfers and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >involving alleged tax-deductible treatment<\/a> of luxury purchases.<\/p>\n<p>Under her plea agreement, Williamson admitted to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sidney-powell-is-an-american-legal-giant\/\" title=\"Sidney Powell Is an American Legal Giant\">making false statements<\/a> to federal authorities, and tax-related allegations tied to a COVID-era federal loan; prosecutors dropped 20 additional charges. The broader investigation previously led other figures-sean mccluskie and lobbyist Greg Campbell-to plead guilty. Becerra has not been charged, and prosecutors and his team have said there\u2019s no evidence he knew about or took part in the alleged misconduct. Williamson\u2019s case has also been used in California\u2019s gubernatorial race, with rival Katie Porter citing it as part of her criticism of Becerra\u2019s prospects.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p>Gov. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/gavin-newsom\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"1426\">Gavin Newsom\u2019s<\/a> (D-CA) former chief of staff pleaded guilty Thursday to federal <span style=\"box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;\">corrupt<\/span>ion-related charges tied to a scheme prosecutors say siphoned money from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-gubernatorial-hopefuls-have-a-gavin-newsom-problem\/\" title=\"California gubernatorial hopefuls have a Gavin Newsom problem\">dormant campaign account belonging<\/a> to former <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/health-and-human-services\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"364\">Health and Human Services<\/a> Secretary <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/xavier-becerra\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"1719\">Xavier Becerra<\/a>, who is now one of the state\u2019s leading gubernatorial candidates. <\/p>\n<p>Dana Williamson, who was Newsom\u2019s chief of staff from 2022 to 2024 and previously worked as a political adviser to Becerra, entered a plea agreement in federal court in Sacramento after months of negotiations with prosecutors. <\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/4568877\/speancer-pratt-shows-off-karen-basura-park\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Spencer Pratt shows off \u2018Karen Basura\u2019 fentanyl park<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/4567130\/becerra-frontrunner-califorani-governor-hilton-poll\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Xavier Becerra becomes front-runner in California gubernatorial race, edging out Steve Hilton: Poll<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/4567007\/spencer-pratt-spin-residence-swipe-bass-la-fire\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Spencer Pratt spins ritzy residence swipe into jab at Bass for LA fires<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p>Under the agreement, Williamson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank and wire <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/fraud\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"3188\">fraud<\/a>, making false statements to federal authorities, and tax-related allegations tied to a COVID-19-era federal loan. Prosecutors dismissed 20 additional charges. <\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Federal prosecutors had accused Williamson of participating in a scheme alongside Becerra\u2019s longtime aide and former chief of staff Sean McCluskie and lobbyist Greg Campbell to funnel about $225,000 from Becerra\u2019s inactive campaign account for personal use. <\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors alleged the money was redirected through consulting arrangements and other payments to conceal the transfers after Becerra was nominated to head the Department of Health and Human Services under former President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-biden\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"471\">Joe Biden<\/a>. Williamson was also accused of expensing luxury purchases as tax-deductible business expenses. <\/p>\n<p>The case first erupted last year when a federal indictment charged Williamson with 23 counts related to fraud, tax crimes, and public corruption, sending shockwaves through California political circles because of her close ties to Newsom and Becerra. <\/p>\n<p>McCluskie, another central figure in the case and a longtime adviser to Becerra, previously pleaded guilty in connection with the broader campaign fund scheme. Campbell also accepted a plea deal at the time of Williamson\u2019s indictment. <\/p>\n<p>Becerra has not been charged, and prosecutors have characterized him as a victim whose dormant campaign account was exploited without his knowledge. His team has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and said federal investigators found no evidence implicating him. <\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/4568859\/ohio-max-miller-sues-ex-wife-emily-moreno-domestic-abuse\/\"><strong>OHIO REP. MAX MILLER SUING EX-WIFE EMILY MORENO FOR DEFAMATION OVER DOMESTIC ABUSE CLAIMS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Becerra\u2019s main competition in the gubernatorial race, former Rep. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/katie-porter\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"10247\">Katie Porter <\/a>(D-CA), has used Williamson\u2019s indictment as a way to bash her primary contender, saying voters shouldn\u2019t \u201crisk\u201d supporting him. <\/p>\n<p>The plea deal reportedly notes that Williamson made \u201cfalse statements\u201d to Becerra about the funds being siphoned from his account. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Newsom ex-aide pleads guilty in scheme tied to Becerra\u2019s dormant account<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4130,"featured_media":2602787,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/AP25317007053161.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651,538],"tags":[37666,41854,63736,32742,32538],"class_list":["post-2602786","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","category-washington-examiner","tag-california-politics","tag-corruption-charges","tag-former-chief-of-staff","tag-gavin-newsom","tag-plea-deal"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/AP25317007053161.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2602786","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4130"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2602786"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2602786\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2602790,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2602786\/revisions\/2602790"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2602787"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2602786"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2602786"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2602786"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}