Insights < BACK TO ALL INSIGHTS
Punishing the Parent – Should the Parents of a School Shooter Be Criminally Liable for their Parental Failures?
FEATURED
April 16, 2024
Punishing the Parent – Should the Parents of a School Shooter Be Criminally Liable for their Parental Failures?
By: Abbey Block
Can being a bad parent make you a criminal? A jury in Michigan recently answered yes in the case of Jennifer and James Crumbley – the parents of high school mass shooter, Ethan Crumbley. Although neither Mr. nor Mrs. Crumbley fired a single shot during the school shooting that killed four students (and injured six other people), last week they were each sentenced to ten years in prison for involuntary manslaughter. The high school shooting, which took place nearly three years ago in Oxford, Michigan is undoubtedly a horrific tragedy. Nobody questions that the shooter, Ethan, should be punished severely for his actions. Indeed, in 2023, Ethan, who was charged as an adult (despite being fifteen at the time of…
Was FTX Collapse as Bad as Enron? In sentencing SBF, Judge Kaplan Says Yes
April 1, 2024
Was FTX Collapse as Bad as Enron? In sentencing SBF, Judge Kaplan Says Yes
By: Jeffrey Hamlin
On Thursday, March 28, 2024, 32-year old Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in one of the largest financial frauds in U.S. history—a fraud perpetrated through two cryptocurrency entities he founded—FTX and Alameda Research. In late-2023, a jury convicted him on various conspiracy and substantive counts for wire fraud on FTX’s customers, securities fraud on FTX’s customers and investors,…
A Tale of Two Courts
February 16, 2024
A Tale of Two Courts
By: James Trusty
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 of an accusation—District Attorney Fanni Willis—presided over by Fulton County…
Why Is an Assault on Congress Member a Federal Crime?
January 12, 2011
Why Is an Assault on Congress Member a Federal Crime?
By: Ifrah Law
The charges against Jared Loughner for shooting Representative Gabrielle Giffords put into sharp focus a little-known federal statute, 18 U.S.C. 351. This law provides for a death penalty for killing a member of Congress, a presidential or vice presidential candidate, or a Supreme Court justice, as well as imprisonment up to life for attempting to kill such a person. Loughner is charged under this statute…
A Tragic Result of the Stevens Case
January 3, 2011
A Tragic Result of the Stevens Case
By: Ifrah Law
We have discussed the fallout from the Ted Stevens prosecution several times in this blog. See this post, this post, and this post. The Jan. 3, 2011, issue of the New Yorker magazine has a fascinating article about another, very sad result of that case – the September 26, 2010, suicide of Nicholas Marsh, a Department of Justice attorney who was part of the prosecution…
Judges Push Back Against Prosecutorial Abuses
December 23, 2010
Judges Push Back Against Prosecutorial Abuses
By: Ifrah Law
Prosecutorial overreaching is still occurring in courts across the nation, but judges are beginning to push back. In the Ted Stevens case, the former senator was prosecuted on charges that he failed to properly report gifts from a lobbyist—only for the government to later drop all charges against him, saying that his jury conviction should be dismissed because government prosecutors and investigators improperly withheld evidence…
Federal Strike Forces Will Boost Medicare Fraud Enforcement
December 17, 2010
Federal Strike Forces Will Boost Medicare Fraud Enforcement
By: Ifrah Law
In October 2010, federal enforcers announced a plan to nearly triple the number of its Medicare fraud strike force units around the nation. In view of the magnitude of health care fraud, this plan is understandable, but the vast majority of providers, who comply with the law, will also see their compliance and other costs increase. The new strike force teams are a central feature…
ISPs Take Note: Court Rules E-mails Have Full 4th Amendment Protection
December 15, 2010
ISPs Take Note: Court Rules E-mails Have Full 4th Amendment Protection
By: Ifrah Law
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit has just issued a trail-blazing opinion that is good news for anyone who has ever sent an e-mail – and that needs to be carefully read and adhered to by all Internet service providers (ISPs). We noted six months ago that ISPs have been all too ready to satisfy prosecutors’ requests for access to customer e-mails…
