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Murdaugh She Wrote
FEATURED
May 21, 2026
Murdaugh She Wrote
By: James Trusty
As the information regarding Alex Murdaugh’s conniving, murderous ways began to spread far beyond the Lowcountry of South Carolina and into the cable and social media airwaves, a curious and ominous thing took root. The temptation of star power and riches slumped stealthily behind the public face of the proceedings, causing a low-level bureaucrat to destroy the notion of an impartial jury in one of the country’s more conspicuous trials. High profile trials will always be a big part of American culture. Many of us follow each “trial of the century” with rapt attention. I feel antiquated mentioning the OJ Simpson trial—it now feels like a case that I have to pull out of a dusty World Book Encyclopedia to…
SPLC’s Informant Program – is Dangerously Unwise the Same as Unlawful?
May 11, 2026
SPLC’s Informant Program – is Dangerously Unwise the Same as Unlawful?
By: Lauren Scribner
THE INDICTMENT On April 21, 2026, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a nonprofit civil rights organization that works to “create a multiracial democracy” by “fight[ing] white supremacy and various forms of injustice”[1] was charged in an 11-count indictment[2] in the Middle District of Alabama. The indictment alleges that the SPLC operated “a covert network of informants who were either associated with violent extremist groups…
Overrun and Overreach: the New Challenge to Grand Jury Subpoenas
March 26, 2026
Overrun and Overreach: the New Challenge to Grand Jury Subpoenas
By: James Trusty
Most criminal law practitioners are quite familiar with clients receiving grand jury subpoenas. There are rituals we go through to figure out whether it’s a “friendly” subpoena, i.e. just trying to get business records from the client to be used against some other target, or whether it’s the visible start of a potential criminal prosecution against the client. Because the legal standard to justify issuing…
Law Enforcers Place Online Payday Lenders in Their Cross Hairs
August 13, 2013
Law Enforcers Place Online Payday Lenders in Their Cross Hairs
By: Ifrah Law
At least six federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the Consumer Protection Financial Bureau (CFPB), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), are currently coordinating a broad crackdown of the online payday lending industry. The agencies are trying to shut down companies that offer short-term loans online at very high interest rates. The online payday lending industry is rapidly growing. Online payday lending…
Did Florida Accidentally Outlaw All Smartphones?
August 8, 2013
Did Florida Accidentally Outlaw All Smartphones?
By: Ifrah Law
A lawsuit recently filed by Incredible Investments, LLC, owned by entrepreneur Consuelo Zapata, alleges that the language in a recently enacted Florida law that was intended to shut down Internet cafes and slot machines has actually outlawed all mobile devices that are capable of accessing the Internet. The complaint, which seeks to have the new law declared unconstitutional, alleges that in the process of hastily…
Full Tilt Poker Remission Process for Players Expected to Begin ‘Shortly,’ and on Favorable Terms
August 2, 2013
Full Tilt Poker Remission Process for Players Expected to Begin ‘Shortly,’ and on Favorable Terms
By: Ifrah Law
More than two years after “Black Friday” – the day on which federal prosecutors shut down the U.S. operations of Full Tilt Poker and other major online poker providers and seized billions of dollars in assets – it appears that the final chapter in that enforcement action may soon be written. The Garden City Group, the entity responsible for claims administration for repayment of Full…
D.C. Circuit Clarifies Key Issue in Wake of High Court’s ‘Honest Services’ Decision
July 29, 2013
D.C. Circuit Clarifies Key Issue in Wake of High Court’s ‘Honest Services’ Decision
By: Ifrah Law
A recent D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals decision narrows the ability of the government to revisit uncharged crimes against a person whose plea has been vacated due to a change in the law. In 2007, Russell Caso had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit honest-services wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 1343 and 1346, based on certain conduct during his employment as…
Conspirators Get Prison Time for Defrauding Small Business 8(a) Program
July 22, 2013
Conspirators Get Prison Time for Defrauding Small Business 8(a) Program
By: Jeff Ifrah
White-collar crime can involve any number of types of fraud against the government or private parties. One that isn’t usually thought about but can result in serious jail time involves conspiracies to obtain government contracts fraudulently by setting up bogus small and minority-owned businesses in order to qualify for government preferences. In the past few months in the Eastern District of Virginia, several businesspeople have…
