Former Tennessee State Representative Sentenced to 36 Months in Federal Prison, and his Chief of Staff Sentenced to 30 Months in Federal Prison, on Fraud, Money Laundering, and[...]

NASHVILLE - Former Tennessee Speaker of the House Glen Casada, 66, and his former Chief of Staff Cade Cothren, 38, of Nashville, have been sentenced for honest services wire fraud; conspiracy to commit money laundering; using a fictitious name to carry out a fraud; and money laundering, announced Robert E. McGuire, Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, and Matthew R. Galeotti, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department's Criminal Division. Casada was sentenced today to 36 months in federal prison, and Cothren was sentenced on September 16, 2025, to 30 months in federal prison.

"Tennesseans have a right to expect honest services from their elected leaders and their staffs," said McGuire. "This prosecution, and the sentences ordered today, show our office's steadfast commitment to seek justice on behalf of our community in cases involving public corruption and fraud. We believe that Tennesseans deserve no less."

"The defendants abused their power as government officials and defrauded taxpayers for their own enrichment," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department's Criminal Division. "The Criminal Division is committed to holding accountable those who betray public trust and steal from government coffers in order to line their own pockets."

"In a betrayal of their duty to Tennesseans, Mr. Casada and Mr. Cothren violated the integrity of our government," said Special Agent in Charge Joe Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. "Public corruption and fraud will not be tolerated in our community-no matter the position or names of the individuals involved. The sentences imposed today should serve as a wake-up call to other public officials who believe there are no consequences for betraying the public trust."

Through the State's Postage and Printing Allowance ("PPA"), each Representative was allocated $3,000, compounding each year, to fund the printing and postage for constituent communications. The expenditure of PPA funds required the approval of the Representative, the Office of the Speaker of the House, and Connie Ridley, the Director of Legislative Administration. Evidence presented a trial showed that shortly after Casada stepped down as Speaker, he, Cothren, and Representative Robin Smith (the "conspirators"), conspired to defraud the State of Tennessee and its citizens. The conspirators agreed that Cothren would create an LLC called Phoenix Solutions to provide constituent mailer services to Tennessee Republican House members. Because of Cothren's tarnished reputation, the conspirators knew that the venture would be unsuccessful if Cothren's involvement was widely known. Instead, Casada and Smith either approached their colleagues in the legislature on behalf of Phoenix Solutions or they did not disclose the LLC's involvement at all. Cothren hid behind the fake identity, "Matthew Phoenix," supposedly an experienced political consultant formerly with a prominent Washington, D.C., consulting firm.

To keep up this sham, the conspirators repeatedly deceived their colleagues and State officials. For example, Cothren sent the State of Tennessee a fraudulent W-9 in the name of "Matthew Phoenix." He also involved his girlfriend in the scheme by directing her to falsely pose as another, made-up employee of Phoenix Solutions during an extended email exchange intended to dupe Ridley. The conspirators even manufactured a fake confrontation between Casada and Smith that took place on the floor of the Tennessee House of Representatives-intended to be in full view of other legislators-to throw the current Speaker off their scent.

They went to these lengths because, had Cothren's involvement been known, the conspirators' invoices would not have been paid. Legislators testified at trial that they would not have agreed to work with Cothren if they had known the true situation.

As suspicions at the State grew, payment of the conspirators' invoices slowed. To break the logjam, Cothren "officially set [Smith] loose on [Ridley's] a**." As sitting State Representatives, Smith and Casada had unparalleled access to Ridley and her superiors in the Speaker's Office compared to a typical State vendor. Smith asked the Speaker's Chief of Staff-effectively Ridley's boss-to put pressure on Ridley to pay Phoenix Solutions' invoices and met personally with Ridley in an effort to do the same. Casada also met with Ridley regarding the delayed payment of the conspirators' invoices and told Smith he was "going to touch base with [the Chief of Staff] tomorrow on this situation of ours." Ridley testified that her sole goal was to "maintain the integrity of the fiscal operation of" the legislature. But when Ridley continued to resist Casada and Smith's pressure campaign, they called her a "b**ch."

In exchange for Casada and Smith's efforts, Cothren kicked back to them portions of the more than $50,000 the State ultimately paid to the conspirators. As Smith testified, the conspirators also concealed these kickbacks by routing payments from the State through Smith and Casada's personal consulting companies to accounts controlled by Cothren before he kicked back a portion of the profits to them. Casada's company, Right Way Consulting, did not exist until he created it in January 2020 to receive fraudulently induced payments from the State.

The initial business with the State and the corresponding abuses of Casada and Smith's public offices was a crucial launching pad for building a much more lucrative business. They leveraged the initial, State-funded success of the company, and their contacts within and intertwined with government, to gain much more lucrative caucus and campaign work. For example, Cothren posed as "Matthew Cyrus" in a bid to persuade Chip Saltsman, the House Republican Caucus consultant, to use Phoenix Solutions for caucus work. In recorded calls with Daniel Cox, the political director of the Tennessee House Republican caucus, Cothren disguised himself as "Matthew Phoenix" in an effort to win caucus business for Phoenix Solutions. Cothren also used the "Matthew Phoenix" pseudonym to deceive Representative Johnny Garrett in an effort to obtain the legislator's campaign business. Witnesses who used or recommended Phoenix Solutions for campaign and caucus work testified that they would not have done so if they had known that Cothren was involved or that sitting Representatives were secretly profiting from the work. In total, Phoenix Solutions received approximately $159,496.48 in revenue from caucus and campaign work.

Smith pleaded guilty to one count of honest services wire fraud in 2022 and testified at trial.

On September 9, 2025, United States District Judge Eli Richardson granted in part and denied in part the motions for acquittal that the defendants had made orally at the conclusion of the United States' proof at trial. Judge Richardson acquitted the defendants on Counts Two, Three and Four of the twenty-count indictment on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence that Casada was an "agent" of the State of Tennessee. Casada now stands convicted of fourteen counts, including conspiracy, honest services fraud, and money laundering. Cothren now stands convicted of sixteen counts of conspiracy, honest services fraud, and money laundering.

In addition to his sentence, Casada was ordered to pay a $30,000 fine and to forfeit $4,643.60 in proceeds. Cothren was ordered to pay a $25,000 fine. Casada and Cothren will also be on supervised release for one year following their terms of imprisonment.

This case was investigated by the FBI, Nashville Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Taylor J. Phillips and Trial Attorneys John P. Taddei and Blake J. Ellison of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, Public Integrity Section, prosecuted the case.

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