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Photographer Convicted for Trying to Blackmail Cameron Diaz
John Rutter was convicted of forgery, attempted larceny, and perjury related to his attempt to blackmail actress Cameron Diaz to pay him $3.5 million to prevent him from selling topless photographs he took of her in 1992. Rutter claimed to have a signed release from Diaz, but the jury convicted him of forgery for the…
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Sony Payola Settlement
Paul McGreal on the Corporate Compliance Prof Blog has an excellent post (here) on the settlement that Sony reached with the New York Attorney General’s office regarding payola — one of my all-time favorite made-up words. In a practice as old as radio, Sony settled a claim that it made payments and gave other items…
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What Happens When the Name on the Building Is Tainted?
Bruce Carton on the Securities Litigation Watch blog has an interesting post (here) about schools with buildings (or in one case a professorship) named after defendants in corporate crime prosecutions, including Kozlowski Hall at Seton Hall and the Rigas Family Theater at St. Bonaventure. Other examples include Alberto Vilar, who is charged with fraud for…
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Where Do the Leaks Lead?
The LATimes here discusses whether possible perjury and obstruction of justice will be the main focus of the special prosecutor in evaluating the evidence received in the investigation of the leak that caused the name of a CIA agent to be released to the press. Often "short-cut" type offenses, like obstruction of justice, are used…
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Leaked Information Describes Wide-Ranging Corruption Probe of Former Cleveland Mayor
The fall-out from the grand jury investigation of Matthew Cooper/Judith Miler affects other media outlets, and back in June the editor for the Cleveland Plain Dealer stated that he would not run a story based on information from confidential sources until the protection for reporters was clarified. The story has now hit, and the paper…
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Collateral Consequences of a Conviction – San Diego Style
We reported here on the recent corruption convictions in San Diego (two councilman convicted for conspiracy, extortion, and fraud (see San Diego Union-Tribune here)). But when the convictions involve politicians, the ramifications can be far reaching. This has proved true in San Diego with the recent convictions necessitating a need for a new election. According…
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More on the Leak Case
The special prosecutor’s investigation of a leak of the name of a CIA operative is back at the top of the news. CNN reports here in an article titled, "Ex-CIA Official Blasts Bush on Leak of Operative’s Name" that a former CIA official who worked with Valerie Plame is not happy about this leak stating…
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Ebbers Sentence and the Media
Has the media been fair to Bernard Ebbers, who was recently convicted and sentenced to 25 years? One person associated with the defense team does not think so and has written his case to the newspapers in the form of an op-ed. It remains to been seen whether the media will print this piece. In…
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Scrushy Seeks Dismissal of SEC Securities Fraud Suit
Former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy filed a brief in response to U.S. District Judge Inge Johnson’s order to show cause seeking dismissal of the SEC’s securities fraud and accounting suit. Scrushy argues that the government has not offered any "credible" evidence that he knew about the fraud at the company, and because the Commission’s evidence…
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Can a $98 Investment Be Worth Over $15,000 a Year Later?
In the "If it sounds too good to be true, it is" category, an AP story (here) describes the scheme that triggered an indictment: Richard J. Dompier of Vale, N.C., started the New Millennium Group in Roseburg in 1998, selling one-ounce silver ingots through the mail and over the Internet for $98 each on promises…
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