TRUSSVILLE, Ala. (WIAT) — A former chief of Trussville Fire and Rescue was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to a number of charges dating back to 2014, including ethics violations and auto theft.

Russell Ledbetter, 61, was arrested and charged in 2018 with two counts of first-degree auto theft and sale and four counts of ethics law violations. According to booking documents, these offenses occurred in August and March of 2014. Ledbetter resigned from his position as Trussville fire chief in 2017.

As part of a plea agreement, the charges were downgraded to misdemeanors. For each charge, Ledbetter received a suspended, or delayed, sentence of 12 months of hard labor. He will be on probation for two years before being required to serve his sentence. If Ledbetter successfully completes the terms of his probation, his sentence may be dismissed, as is typical of suspended sentences.

Ledbetter is a member, and formerly a chairman, of the Alabama Fire College and Personnel Standards Commission, according to the Alabama Fire College website. He has also served in the Cahaba Heights Fire District, the Bessemer Fire Department, and he retired as Fire Chief of Trussville Fire and Rescue, his bio states.