New Orleans trumpeter gets 18 months over charity fraud

By KEVIN McGILL
Associated Press

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A renowned New Orleans trumpet player has been sentenced to 18 months in prison over a million-dollar charity fraud case. Irvin Mayfield was a jazz trumpet player who became a symbol of New Orleans resilience after Hurricane Katrina. His musical partner, pianist Ronald Markham, was also sentenced to 18 months for steering more than $1.3 million from the New Orleans Public Library Foundation to themselves. Both pleaded guilty last November to a single charge of conspiracy to commit fraud. They are to report to prison Jan. 5.