March 24, 2006, Sun staff writer

A former state correctional officer was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in federal prison on Thursday, making him the first former prison employee to be sentenced to prison in connection with a steroid ring.

Another prison worker pleaded guilty in a related case Thursday and will be sentenced later in the spring.

Marcus Hodges, 33, who has also been known as Marcus Starling, had pleaded guilty in October to possession with the intent to distribute narcotics and the distribution of anabolic steroids. Before being sentenced by U.S. District Judge Henry Lee Adams, Hodges apologized for his behavior.

"I accept all responsibility of what I have done wrong," Hodges said. "I'm sorry and I take responsibility."

Hodges was the fifth of the six former corrections officers charged in the case in 2005. The six had ties to prison softball teams, which have been the apparent epicenter of many problems uncovered in the state prison system in recent months, including steroid use. The four sentenced previously were all sentenced to probation.

Hodges was facing up to 20 years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, which was a longer potential sentence than others involved in the case because Hodges was also convicted for his involvement with narcotics.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Don Pashayan encouraged Adams to issue a lighter sentence than he might otherwise consider.

"Mr. Hodges has met with and provided information to law enforcement on various aspects of ongoing federal and state investigations of current and former Department of Corrections employees, Pashayan told the judge. As an example, Pashayan cited undercover prescription drug buys Hodges had made for investigators.

Hodges' attorney, Tom Edwards of Gainesville, said Hodges would not have been in court at all if he had not gone to work for the state prison system. "That organization was a culture of corruption," Edwards said. "My client was not a leader, he was a follower. He became a cog in the wheel."

Adams allowed Hodges to remain free for a month to take care of some medical issues before reporting to prison.

Also on Thursday, Kevin Kennington, 26, a lieutenant at South Florida Reception Center in Miami, pleaded guilty to possession of steroids in August 2002. He faces up to a year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. He is scheduled to be sentenced within a couple of months.