Investigations Posts

A Tale of Two Courts

Feb 16, 2024

A Tale of Two Courts

Much has been made of the contemptuous and combustible combination of former President Trump and Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoran, the trial judge in the New York “fraud” case that imperils Trump’s ability to do business in New York. This week we got a glimpse into a different proceeding involving an extremely opinionated subject…

A Scandal’s Fine Print

Jan 19, 2024

A Scandal’s Fine Print

The recent filing of a motion for disqualification and for dismissal of the Georgia RICO case involving former President Trump is getting plenty of attention for its salacious details. And indeed, a District Attorney selecting an underqualified love-interest to serve as Special Prosecutor is newsworthy stuff, particularly with Mr. Wade filing for divorce just one…

Human Trafficking Blindspot

Nov 27, 2023

Human Trafficking Blindspot

For many years now, state and federal prosecutors have become increasingly aware of the insidious nature of sexual and labor trafficking. Victimization is cultivated by strong, threatening, and cunning traffickers. Gangs have increasingly turned to sex trafficking as a source of illicit income with low visibility—a trade that does not “bring the heat” to the…

Equal Justice as Another Casualty of War

Nov 9, 2023

Equal Justice as Another Casualty of War

While many Americans properly focus on the carnage and chaos of two wars, there is also a more subtle war being waged by progressive mayors—and others in high positions—on fundamentally important notions like Rule of Law and Equal Justice. Last weekend over 100,000 protesters descended upon Washington, D.C. to chant and vandalize as a bewildering…

Not a Grande Victory for DOJ

Sep 13, 2023

Not a Grande Victory for DOJ

Frustrated with the massive influx of aliens into Texas, Texas Governor Greg Abbott came up with a plan that was physically simple, but legally complex: drop a 1000-foot-long buoy barrier into the middle of the Rio Grande. The four-foot spherical orange buoys were chained together and anchored to the riverbed near the town of Eagle…

Robocop Finds His Man, But Man Gets Robocop’s Instruction Manual

Jun 22, 2023

Robocop Finds His Man, But Man Gets Robocop’s Instruction Manual

Many years ago, a prosecutor I worked with at the time was in a fascinating murder trial, where the defense included a forensic psychiatrist opining that the defendant suffered from multiple personalities. According to this expert, one of the “inhabitants” of the defendant’s mind was a creature named Tofu the Demon Dog. On cross examination,…

Eight Finance Social Media Influencers Charged In $100 Million Market Manipulation Scheme

Dec 19, 2022

Eight Finance Social Media Influencers Charged In $100 Million Market Manipulation Scheme

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has announced charges against eight finance-oriented social media influencers in an alleged $100 million securities fraud scheme, in which they engaged in “pump-and-dump” market manipulation by leveraging their following on various social media platforms. The securities fraud charges, unsealed on December 13th, name seven defendants with an eighth…

Michigan’s High Profile Boomerang

Apr 21, 2022

Michigan’s High Profile Boomerang

About one month before the 2020 election, the Department of Justice proudly announced their disruption of a scheme to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Six men were arrested and referred to as “violent extremists.” Gov. Whitmer’s surrogates indicated that the blame was not fully on the gnarly bearded men whose pictures dominated newscasts around the…

Biden’s aggressive Justice Dept – Civil Rights Division putting local police on notice. Here’s how

May 19, 2021

Biden’s aggressive Justice Dept – Civil Rights Division putting local police on notice. Here’s how

This article was originally published on FoxNews.com on May 16th, 2021. Department of Justice priorities obviously can change with new administrations, and history shows this with regularity. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy was greatly concerned with the Mafia’s activities, and John Ashcroft wanted more obscenity and pornography prosecutions. Generally, the subject matter emphasis pops up and…

Civil or Criminal Liability: Charging A Payment Processing Case by Coin Toss?

Aug 17, 2020

Civil or Criminal Liability: Charging A Payment Processing Case by Coin Toss?

In the eyes of federal investigators, when is a payment processor considered a benevolent alternative to traditional banks, and when is it viewed as a shady facilitator of all things criminal?  In other words, is the client another Paypal or Venmo, or are we looking at a potential WireCard AG prosecution? We have noticed in…