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Get Your Theory of Prosecution Right at the Start
In a criminal prosecution, it’s important for the government to think through the theory of its case at the start and not shift things around once the evidence is in. That is certainly not what happened in United States v. Milwitt, a bankruptcy fraud case in which prosecutors did not prove the theory charged in…
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Two Executives Charged with Backdating Options
The SEC filed a civil securities fraud complaint (here) against two former financial executives at Engineered Support Systems, Inc. alleging that they backdated options over a six-year period. Gary C. Gerhardt is the former CFO and Steven J. Landmann is the former Controller, and they are accused of backdating options worth over $15 million for…
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The Jury Pool Issue Heats Up in the Scrushy-Siegelman Case
Well before their trial on corruption charges in the Middle District of Alabama, former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy and former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman challenged the method for putting together the jury pool by arguing that it did not include a sufficient number of African-Americans, violating their Sixth Amendment rights. The issue remained undecided through…
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Is Libby Backpedaling?
All along, defense counsel for I. Lewis Libby proclaimed that he would testify in his defense at trial to advance the position that any misstatements in his grand jury testimony and to the FBI were the product of a faulty memory — the "dedicated but overworked public servant" defense. It now appears that Libby may…
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Philly Politician Indicted
Vincent J. Fumo, a long-time Philadelphia politician (State Senator – Democrat), has been indicted. The case relates to his alleged improper use of a charitable foundation. The 267 page indictment is described in a press release as including charges of: "139 counts, that is, two counts of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in…
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Not Guilty for AOL Executives
Mid-level AOL executives were found not guilty after a lengthy jury trial. (see Business Week here) Carrie Johnson of the Washington Post reports on the details of the trial and the "not guilty" verdicts for the three defendants. It is admirable to see Chuck Rosenberg, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia commenting…
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Fourth Day Defense Victory in AOL Execs Case
First it was 29 of 31 counts dismissed. And on the 4th day the jury returned with the not guilty verdict. Details to follow. But the news is that the AOL executives have been acquitted. For background see here. (esp)
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Another Long Sentence – 25 Years
The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Central District of California issued a press release telling of the 25 year sentence of an individual who was found guilty after a jury trial. The release states: "A Southern California man found guilty of bilking the customers of Employers Mutual LLC – a company that falsely purported to…
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Hyundai Motor Co. Chair Gets Three Years
Wall Street Jrl reports here that Hyundai Motor Co. Chairman Chung Mong Koo has been sentenced to three years. The Wall Street Jrl notes that whether he will actually serve jail time remains to seen. (esp)
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8 Hours of Tapes
8 hours of tapes are what the jury is presenting hearing according to the Washington Post here. And Talk Left has some interesting commentary here. Also check out Neil Lewis’s article in the New York Times here. Some questions to consider: How will jurors react to these 8 hours of testimony? Will they find the…
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