New York Criminal Lawyer Blog

An FBI official has reported to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee about the “massive” frauds the law enforcement agency has uncovered while attempting to combat financial crimes, sources tell a New York Criminal Lawyer.

An assistant director told the committee “the FBI has continued to uncover massive frauds, including newly identified Ponzi schemes.” He also told New York Criminal Lawyers that new fraud cases had increased by 111 percent and high-yield securities frauds have rise by more than 200 percent.

New York Criminal Lawyers have learned of a number of major fraud cases, this year alone. In June, a $1.9 billion fraud caused the sixth-largest bank failure in the country. In July, a managing partner at a major firm pleaded guilty to taking part in a $700 million scheme that took money from charities, university foundations, pensions, and retirement plans. In September, the owner of an investment firm pleaded guilty to a $880 million Ponzi scheme involving his own firm.

We elect them in part for their judgment and because we trust them. We give them our tax money and entrust them to make decisions that will impact our communities for decades to come. Which is why it is all the more shameful that a politician was arrested for driving under the influence, said a New York Criminal Lawyer. A field sobriety test revealed that the man had a blood alcohol content of nearly three times the legal limit – 0.21.

The man told police that he went to a hospital because he had pain in his ribs. There, the staff indicated that the man left their custody while under the influence of alcohol, noted a New York Criminal Lawyer. He refused their treatment and went out into the night, all alone, ready to get behind the wheel, indicated a New York Criminal Lawyer. A hospital employee called the police to let them know the politician was driving, drinking, and a danger to the world.

Local officials are trying to determine if the man’s conduct violates their code of ethics, reports a New York Criminal Lawyer. If it does they would be able to remove him from office. If not, what does it take? If a politician can drive drunk and remain in office, what else can he do? The man faces a $1000 fine and up to a year in jail. He could, in theory, go to jail for a year and still remain a councilman. The politician had no comment.

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Famed rapper T.I. has had a recent string of bad news but a Los Angeles area prosecutor decided to cut the artist a break. Earlier this year T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, was arrested by authorities. The arrest was for possession of drugs and took place after a routine traffic stop, said a New York Criminal Lawyer. A day after the arrest T.I. failed a drug test. The arrest and drug test failure resulted in the rapping icon violating his parole. As a result, Clifford “T.I.” Harris was ordered back to prison where he will serve the remainder of his 11 month sentence, reports a New York Criminal Lawyer.

Prosecutors had the option of charging T.I. with the offense, trying him, and then having him serve the time after his Atlanta-based jail time was finished. However, they used their prosecutorial discretion and dropped the charges, notes a New York Criminal Lawyer. It is a silver of a silver lining on an otherwise quite dark cloud, for T.I. Not so lucky may be the woman accompanying T.I. at the time of the arrest. Prosecutors have not decided whether they will charge her with drug possession.

T.I. was out on parole for a weapons based offense. The rapper had attempted to illegally purchase several high powered machine guns in Atlanta, said a New York Criminal Lawyer. He briefly served jail time but was to spent the rest of his time in public service, mentoring the youth of the community, advising them of how they could avoid a similar fate.

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Though whatever occurred between a police officer and his judge girlfriend resulted in her sustaining a cut on her scalp and multiple scrapes and bruises, it did not amount to assault, according to a Philadelphia Common Pleas Court jury.

It took five hours of deliberations over two days for the jury – composed of eight women and four men – to acquit the 49-year-old officer of both aggravated and simple assault charges, sources told a New York Criminal Lawyer. The officer was found guilty, however, of violating Pennsylvania’s wiretap statute. He recorded a number of the judge’s angry calls to him three days after their fight without her consent or knowledge.

Three days after the altercation, the officer had already been suspended from his job as a narcotics detective. His defense attorney told a New York Criminal Lawyer that the recordings had been an attempt for the officer to defend himself against his bosses, because he feared his side of the story would not have been believed otherwise.

It has been twenty-two years since the grandmother in this case found her daughter-in-law and granddaughter raped and strangled in bed. She has recently called on their accused killer to “finally face a jury like a man” – he has caused yet another delay in court, sources told a New York Criminal Lawyer.

The 47-year-old suspect fired yet another defense lawyer, which caused the grandmother to make her statement. It is her belief that he is trying to postpone his trial in Bronx Criminal Court as much as possible.

“He’s playing games with the court,” said the 68-year-old woman, who is retired, but was once Liza Minelli’s personal assistant. “He’s already fired at least two attorneys in one year. The longer he keeps this up, the longer he avoids a real jail sentence.” The suspect is not only in trouble for rape and murder, but also faces drug charges, as well. He is currently being held on Rikers Island.

OJ Simpson is going to jail for a long long time. After one appeal after another Simpson’s case was finally heard by the Nevada Supreme Court, said a New York Criminal Lawyer. The court affirmed the lower court ruling finding Simpson guilty. Simpson was charged with conspiracy to commit a number of crimes, including: robbery, burglary while in possession of a deadly weapon, and multiple counts of first degree kidnapping. Conspiracy is a unique crime in that one need not actually commit the crime in order to be found guilty, notes a New York Criminal Lawyer. Rather, all that need be proven is that a person agreed with another person to commit a crime and then that one of those people took an action in furtherance of the crime. A jury found that Simpson had done so and he was convicted of conspiracy.

Simpson is most famous from his days as a star football player, famous actor, and of course from his mid-90s murder trial. Simpson was found not guilty at the time, a decision was raised the ire of many. The trial itself spawn much of today’s modern “court TV” as well and is considered a major moment in the 20th Century of the United States. At the time Simpson vowed to find the real killers. He then mostly played golf.

One of Simpson’s co-conspirators had his conviction reversed and a new trial has been ordered for the man, noted a New York Criminal Lawyer.

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Two civil enforcement cases filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission may define when insider trading can be rightly called securities fraud, according to a New York Criminal Lawyer.

Actions of civil enforcement have been taken against the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team, and the former chief executive of Countrywide Financial. These cases are very important to the S.E.C. which is trying to restore its image as the defender of securities markets.

Generally, New York Criminal Lawyers report, S.E.C. cases are settled and no one admits guilt. These two cases against the team owner and the former executive, however, are being pursued to the limit of the law.

A police chief in Texas is taking a harder line on DWI, sources tell a New York Criminal Lawyer.

The police chief’s proposal would lower the blood alcohol limit from 0.08 to between 0.05 and 0.07, which means it would be a great deal easier to get arrested for DWI. The charge would not be as great, but bars, of course, still think it’s a fairly terrible idea.

“Pretty soon, you won’t be able to get wine in church,” a bartender told a New York Criminal Lawyer. “You won’t be able to have communion anymore. Even Jesus won’t be able to drink wine.”

An Omaha financial advisor who had a number of famous clients, including members of the sports world, defrauded investors of over $3 million over a period of four years, a U.S. Attorney related to a New York Criminal Lawyer. The 46-year-old financial advisor pleaded guilty to securities fraud in U.S. District Court.

New York Criminal Lawyers have learned the financial advisor received millions of dollars under false pretenses, with the idea that she would invest the money. Instead, she spent it to enhance her own lifestyle and to bolster businesses under her control.

Money was spent to charter private aircraft, buy new homes, and pay off both personal debts and debts accumulated due to business. Her victims lost $3,035,000 between 2005 and 2009. According to a New York Criminal Lawyer, she even advised Michael Vick after his dogfighting case and bankruptcy.

A Massachusetts woman confessed the insurance claims she filed on her own behalf and her husband’s were actually false – their injuries were self-inflicted, a New York Criminal Lawyer has learned. They had eaten glass particles, purposefully, as a part of their scam.

The woman pleaded guilty to a 23-count indictment charging her with fraud and conspiracy, among other offenses, sources told a New York Criminal Lawyer.

Allegedly, the couple had collected more than $200,000 in compensation by filing insurance claims against hotels, restaurants, and grocery stores, claiming the food they had eaten or bought from these places contained glass particles. This all occurred in a period between 1997 and 2005.