Former Philly Councilmember Bobby Henon reports to prison

He was known for a decade as Northeast Philadelphia’s representative on City Council, a fierce advocate for organized labor and — for a time — as Council’s Democratic majority leader.

But starting this week, Bobby Henon added a new title to that list: Inmate No. 77029-066.

The three-term Democrat, who resigned his post last year after a bribery conviction, reported to the federal correctional institution at Fort Dix on Monday to begin serving his 3½-year sentence on bribery charges.

“This is a difficult day, as I now have to say goodbye to you all for awhile,” he posted in a message to his Facebook followers. “To my family and friends who stood by me through all of it, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Henon will serve his sentence in the prison’s minimum-security satellite camp — a unit that primarily houses those convicted of white-collar crimes and inmates the federal Bureau of Prisons deems a low security risk.

Inmates are typically given a wide range of movement in dormitory-style accommodations.

But in the federal prison system, there is no possibility for parole. With time off for good behavior, Henon could be released from custody in spring 2026.

» READ MORE: Former City Councilmember Bobby Henon's bribery sentence. Here’s what you should know.

The former Council member, who was not available for comment, was convicted in 2021 of selling the powers of his office to labor leader John J. Dougherty in exchange for a $70,000-a-year salary from their politically powerful union, Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

He has signaled his intent to appeal, but after his sentencing hearing last month the former elected official said he would honor the sentence the judge imposed.

During the proceeding, Henon, 54, choked back tears, telling U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl that he didn’t viewthe payments from Local 98 as bribes at the time, but now realized he’d committed a crime.

“I tried my best to help every Philadelphian, especially those who were vulnerable and those in need,” he said. To his constituents, he added: “By putting the interest of my union first, I failed you.”

» READ MORE: How Henon’s sentence compares with other bribery cases

The son of a union electrician who grew up in largely blue-collar Wissinoming, Henon entered the political arena at age 19 when he was elected as a Democratic committeeperson. He followed in his father’s professional footsteps, joining Local 98 as a seasonal worker and rising through its ranks from apprentice to foreman to business agent.

He served as the union’s political director from 1999 until his election to Council in 2011 — a period that overlapped with Dougherty’s transformation of what was once a relatively small local into the most politically potent union in the city and the state’s largest source of independent campaign cash.

But Henon’s relationship with the union leader eventually led to his undoing.

At Henon’s trial, prosecutors portrayed him as Dougherty’s puppet — swept into office on a wave of Local 98 manpower and money, controlled by his union paycheck and then used as a vise to squeeze Dougherty’s personal and professional enemies.

Dougherty repeatedly leaned on Henon to use the powers of his office to advance legislation or other government actions that were personally beneficial to him or the standing of his union.

“Over 18 months of recorded conversations between [Henon] and his codefendant John Dougherty there was not a single instance in which Mr. Henon said no to him,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank R. Costello Jr. said at Henon’s sentencing.

Dougherty, who was also convicted of bribery charges, awaits sentencing and two additional trials. The first — on separate allegations he and others embezzled more than $600,000 from their union — is scheduled to begin next month.

Henon did not mention Dougherty in his Facebook post Monday.

Instead, he wrote: “I thank my Local 98 union brothers and sisters for your help, support and encouragement over the years. I am humbled by all of it along with the rest of the labor movement who have always been the point of the spear for all working families.”

Staff writer Oona Goodin-Smith contributed to this article.