Former state Sen. Philip Moran and his son, former Diamondhead Councilman Alan Moran, were sentenced to prison after being convicted in a Hancock County case involving their attempt to persuade a stalking victim of the younger Moran to drop charges.
Circuit Judge Christopher Schmidt sentenced Philip to 20 years, with 12 years to serve in prison followed by eight years of post-release supervision. Alan also received a 20-year sentence, with 10 years to serve in prison followed by 10 years of post-release supervision. Because his sentence will run consecutively to a previously imposed 12-year sentence in a child exploitation case, Alan will serve a total of 22 years in prison.
Both the Morans were found guilty of bribery and conspiracy to commit bribery by a jury earlier this month.
The case stemmed from a 2024 stalking incident involving Alan. At the time, he was on probation after convictions for exploitation of a child and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. While he was serving as a councilman and working for his family’s pest control company in 2022, he offered a 17-year-old male employee beer, money, and a cellphone to play with a sex toy in front of him.
The teenager, who said Alan also touched his genitalia without consent, refused the proposition and instead texted his parents and friends for help. They intercepted him at a gas station and turned Alan in to authorities.
Then, in November 2024, Alan began stalking a different victim, a 19-year-old employee at Lowe’s hardware store in Waveland. According to trial testimony, Alan repeatedly entered the store, made sexual comments toward the employee, and waited for him in the parking lot after work, asking him to get into his truck. The employee subsequently turned him in to authorities, and Alan was arrested.
That’s when his fellow politician father got involved.
According to testimony during trial, around the time the stalking complaint was filed with the Waveland Police Department, Philip withdrew $30,000 in cash from the bank in three bundles of $10,000.
One of their co-defendants, Jeremy Billings, testified that Alan gave him the cash and instructed him to persuade the stalking victim to drop the charges while Philip was present and could hear the conversation. Billings said he then enlisted another man, Ian Schexnayder, to accompany him to the Lowe’s. Surveillance video shown during the trial captured the pair waiting for the victim to leave work on Dec. 13, 2024.
Prosecutors said Billings and Schexnayder approached the victim in the parking lot and offered between $10,000 and $20,000 in exchange for dropping the stalking charges. The victim refused the money and immediately reported the encounter to the Waveland Police Department.
The resulting investigation, conducted by the Waveland Police Department and the FBI, included reviewing phone records that prosecutors said showed communication patterns among Philip, Alan, and Billings during key points of the scheme.
During the trial, Philip maintained he was unaware of the money’s intended purpose until after the bribery attempt failed, at which point he instructed Billings to return the cash. Alan argued that his actions did not violate Mississippi law. After deliberating for just over an hour, the jury returned guilty verdicts against both Morans on all counts.
Both Billings and Schexnayder reached a plea deal with prosecutors, part of which was to testify against the Morans. Their sentencings are still pending.
At Wednesday’s sentencing of the Morans, Schmidt described the case as one of “hubris, arrogance, and corruption.” Speaking specifically about Philip, the judge said it was particularly damaging that he committed the crimes while serving as a member of the Mississippi State Parole Board.