Jesse Jackson Jr. expected to leave US prison in Alabama for halfway house in DC

FILE - In this Aug. 14, 2013, file photo, former Illinois Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., leaves federal court in Washington after being sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for misusing $750,000 in campaign funds. Jackson Jr. will be released from a federal prison on Thursday, March 26, 2015, and will serve out the remainder of his term in a Washington, D.C., halfway house, former U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy told The Associated Press after visiting Jackson behind bars. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) (The Associated Press)

Former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. is expected to leave an Alabama prison, a year and a half after going in following his guilty plea to illegally spending $750,000 in campaign funds on items like furs and vacations.

A friend of his, former Congressman Patrick Kennedy, told The Associated Press this week Jackson would be released Thursday. The 50-year-old Jackson will serve the remainder of his sentence at a Washington, D.C., halfway house.

Kennedy spoke after meeting Jackson at the Montgomery prison. Jackson began serving a 2 1/2-year sentence in 2013.

Kennedy says Jackson's wife, Sandra; his children and parents will drive him to the halfway house. Neither prison officials nor the Jacksons would provide details.

Jackson's wife must serve a related, yearlong term after her husband completes his sentence.