The Supreme Court last month dismissed an appeal by Sean Quinn jr against his three-month sentence for contempt of court.

BBC: Former billionaire Sean Quinn begins nine-week jail term

If given a sentence of life, defense lawyer, Wendell Odom, Jr.

CNN: Andrea Yates case: Texas mother gets life in prison

But John Cook, editor-in-chief of Gawker, called the sentence "preposterous" and suggested Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. was trying to curry favor with Fox and its powerful chairman, Roger Ailes.

WSJ: Fox News 'mole' resurfaces with book