Bridgeport’s former school board chair will not serve prison time for lying to a federal grand jury about an alleged campaign finance scheme.

But this may not be Jessica Martinez’s last time in court.

After a judge sentenced her to “time served” on Tuesday, Martinez said she will testify against former Democratic state Sen. Dennis Bradley in his upcoming conspiracy and wire fraud trial.

Before her sentencing, Martinez led a prayer circle outside of the New Haven federal courthouse.

It must have worked.

Although Martinez faced up to five years behind bars, Judge Victor Bolden ruled that she will not serve prison time, pay a fine or serve probation. He noted that Martinez has already been under supervision since 2021, when she was indicted on eight counts of campaign finance fraud and making false statements to a grand jury.

Prosecutors dropped the campaign counts in April, when Martinez pleaded guilty to the grand jury charge.

“Blessed. I feel amazing,” she said after the sentencing. “I know my contribution; I’ve admitted to my contribution. And I also know I didn’t deserve this journey.”

Martinez served as Bradley’s treasurer during his 2018 run for the Connecticut Senate.

Prosecutors allege that he lied about using personal funds on a campaign event to illegally obtain tens of thousands of dollars in public funds. Bradley has insisted that he did nothing wrong and is asking a judge to dismiss his case.

Martinez’s attorney laid the blame on Bradley for giving her “extremely poor and self-serving advice.”

“She relied on advice from Dennis Bradley,” public defender Carly Levenson told the judge. “Each time, he assured her the campaign had done nothing wrong.”

But in a court filing, prosecutors said that “Martinez willfully participated in a months-long conspiracy and scheme to defraud the State of Connecticut out of public campaign funds.”

During the 2018 Democratic primary, she approved an application for $84,450 in public funds, and later applied for $95,710 for the general election.

“The reason she lied to the grand jury is because she lied to the FBI [and] state officials,” said assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Francis. “The citizens of Bridgeport … have repeatedly been faced with conduct that calls into question the integrity of their elections.”

Bradley’s trial is set for December after numerous delays. His case was on hold for two years while an appeals court decided if prosecutors could use 28 minutes of video footage obtained just days before his trial.

“I’m very confident that vindication will come to us,” he told News 12 Connecticut in May 2022. “I think the truth shall prevail. And I feel immensely proud to be in a country where the rule of law is governed by average citizens who are empaneled on a jury to determine exactly what the truth is. And as we move forward, I’m looking forward to a brighter future for myself and for Jessica.”

But now, Martinez is poised to testify against her one-time political ally and co-defendant.

“If the government calls upon me, I will be there,” she said. “He should have been more honest with me. There were things that I was unaware of. There were things I was left in the dark from, and it wasn’t until I was indicted where I got details and evidence that I understood Dennis Bradley's role in all of it … Still to this day, Dolphins Cove was not a campaign event, in my opinion. I had nothing to do with organizing it, but he did.”

Despite her conviction, Martinez may not be done with politics. She told the judge that she plans to run for public office again in Bridgeport.