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Flirting with Disaster: Kid Glove Treatment of an Assassination Attempt Sets Damaging Example
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October 6, 2025
Flirting with Disaster: Kid Glove Treatment of an Assassination Attempt Sets Damaging Example
By: James Trusty
On a crisp October afternoon while the media focused on P Diddy’s high-profile New York sentencing, a less conspicuous—but more consequential—hearing took place in another federal courthouse, not far from the nation’s capital. Nichola Roske was sentenced for the attempted assassination of at least one Supreme Court associate justice. On June 8, 2022, Roske flew across the country—California to Virginia—and then traveled by cab to the Maryland address of Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Roske arrived armed with a laser-sighted handgun, knife, lock picking set, duct tape, hammer, crowbar, and tactical gear. In his on-line research before the cross-country flight, Roske searched for information on conservative justices, mass shooters, and techniques for hurting people with knives, including the question:…
This Wall Won’t Hold: Preventing Foreign Claims on Asbestos Trusts
August 25, 2025
This Wall Won’t Hold: Preventing Foreign Claims on Asbestos Trusts
By: George Calhoun
Bankruptcy continues as a favored vehicle for the resolution of mass-tort claims, particularly asbestos-based claims. In two recent cases in Delaware, an often-overlooked issue has raised a red flag concerning the fairness of the trusts proposed in many of these cases. The plan proponents in those cases proposed asbestos trusts that provided that foreign claimants were not eligible for payment. It is a foundational principle…
The Referral was the Easy Part – Where does Gabbard’s Evidence Lead DOJ?
July 29, 2025
The Referral was the Easy Part – Where does Gabbard’s Evidence Lead DOJ?
By: James Trusty
Americans are used to a considerable level of dirty tricks when it comes to politics. Occasionally, however, a legal line is crossed and a high-level official is either chased out of office, subjected to a criminal prosecution, or both. Ask Richard Nixon, Marvin Mandel, and Bob Menendez. Despite the predictable proclamation from prominent democrats that DNI Director Tulsi Gabbard’s referral is “old news” and “politically…
FBI Raid Targets For-Profit School in Florida: Was This Necessary?
June 18, 2012
FBI Raid Targets For-Profit School in Florida: Was This Necessary?
By: Nicole Kardell
When you hear of FBI agents descending upon a place, you might think of a hostage situation, a drug raid, or the penetration of a terrorist cell. But you probably wouldn’t assume that those armed agents were working with the U.S. Department of Education on a raid on a Florida for-profit college. FBI agents raided campuses of FastTrain College in May 2012 in order to…
DOJ’s Response to Grassley Gives Details, but Not the Right Details
June 4, 2012
DOJ’s Response to Grassley Gives Details, but Not the Right Details
By: Nicole Kardell
The Justice Department showed off some fancy dance moves in a recent sidestep it used to respond to an inquiry from Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). Grassley wanted detail from Justice to support its claims that it has brought thousands of mortgage fraud cases, including numerous convictions against Wall Street execs, following the 2008 housing crisis. Justice provided detail . . . but not detail responsive…
Abbott’s $1.6 Billion Pharmacy Law Settlement Stands as Cautionary Tale to Pharma Companies
May 29, 2012
Abbott’s $1.6 Billion Pharmacy Law Settlement Stands as Cautionary Tale to Pharma Companies
By: Ifrah Law
A recent settlement by global pharmaceutical giant Abbott Laboratories over its promotion of the drug Depakote shows that federal regulators remain prepared to pursue drug manufacturers for promoting unapproved uses of their products. Abbott has agreed to pay federal and state governments a total of $1.6 billion in criminal and civil fines and to plead guilty to a criminal misdemeanor violation of the Food and…
Worst Part of Wal-Mart Bribery Case Is Failure to Conduct Proper Investigation
April 24, 2012
Worst Part of Wal-Mart Bribery Case Is Failure to Conduct Proper Investigation
By: Jeff Ifrah
Over the weekend, The New York Times broke a major story, publishing a highly detailed 8,000-word article that seems to indicate that Wal-Mart not only engaged in a pattern of bribery of Mexican government officials in the mid-2000s but also that the company intentionally stifled an internal investigation of the alleged bribery and in fact directed most of its furor against the former employee who…
Suspect Extradited From Estonia to Face Massive Internet Fraud Charges
April 23, 2012
Suspect Extradited From Estonia to Face Massive Internet Fraud Charges
By: Ifrah Law
One of the features of crimes committed over the Internet is that they may be committed from anywhere in the world where a defendant has access a computer. A current case in New York shows that extradition likewise can reach around the globe. On April 19, 2012, Anton Ivanov was extradited from Estonia to face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and computer intrusion,…