Supreme Court rejects appeal from former Warren County Rep. Peter Beck

Former Rep. Peter Beck, pictured, was found guilty on 13 criminal counts in June 2015 but 10 were later overturned by the First District Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

Former Rep. Peter Beck, pictured, was found guilty on 13 criminal counts in June 2015 but 10 were later overturned by the First District Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a request for a new trial for former Mason mayor and state Rep. Peter Beck, who served 16 months in prison after being convicted in 2015 on charges of defrauding investors in a computer software company.

The justices action Monday would appear to bring the case to a conclusion for Beck, a Republican who resigned his seat in 2014 after being indicted on 16 felony charges.

A state court convicted Beck of 13 counts and sentenced him to four years in prison, but a state appeals court in 2016 overturned 10 of those charges. He was seeking to have a retrial on the three remaining theft counts.

Beck was released from prison at the end of 2016.

Richard Kerger, a Toledo attorney who filed the appeal to the Supreme Court on behalf of Beck, said Beck could still pursue a post-conviction appeal in federal court but “that possibility has not yet been determined.”

The justices issued the ruling without any comment.

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