Lathrop B. Nelson, III
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Don’t Text with an Informant and iPads are Not Phones
While Dora the Explorer’s cousin, Diego, may proudly proclaim that “helping out each other is good for everyone,” apparently defendant Curtis Diego’s “friend,” Gary Still, had no such interest. Mr. Still, when confronted by police about his suspected theft of numerous firearms, quickly confessed to… Read More
Former Speaker Hastert Indicted: Structuring a Costly Cover-Up
Yesterday, the Department of Justice charged former House Speaker Dennis Hastert in an indictment stemming from his alleged agreement to pay an unknown individual $3.5 million “to compensate for and conceal his prior misconduct” against that unknown person. According to the indictment, Mr. Hastert, a… Read More
What To Do At Your Federal Sentencing: Lessons Learned from Ex-Virginia Governor McDonnell
Yesterday, former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell was sentenced to two years in prison following his public corruption conviction for using the governor’s office to help a dietary supplement executive in exchange for loans, gifts, and, as we’ve noted before, a Rolex and a joy ride… Read More
Former Oriole Swinging for the Fences in Insider Trading Prosecution
The fallout from the Second Circuit’s decision in United States v. Newman continues and threatens to affect not just future enforcement actions, but pending prosecutions. As we have noted before, the Second Circuit in Newman required that a trader / tippee know that an insider… Read More
Supreme Court Denies Review of “Acquitted Conduct” Sentences
A defendant exercises his constitutional right to a jury trial and is proven guilty by a jury of his peers. The jury, confronted with multiple charges against the defendant, weighs the evidence and acquits on all counts, save one for which they find him guilty… Read More
Third Circuit Issues Cautionary Tale for Appellate Waivers
As we’ve written about before, federal prosecutors generally require a waiver of certain appellate rights in connection with a plea deal. Yesterday, the Third Circuit issued an opinion that explores what happens when a criminal defendant, who has executed an appellate waiver, violates his plea… Read More
Supreme Court Checks in on Bank Fraud
Lost amid the flurry of the Supreme Court’s end of term decisions on recess appointments, cell phone privacy and contraception coverage is the Court’s dip into the federal bank fraud statute, 18 U.S.C. § 1344, in Loughrin v. United States. We no doubt share your surprise… Read More
Insider Trading Probe a Bogey for Mickelson?
On Friday, the Wall Street Journal and New York Times reported that federal authorities are investigating investor Carl Icahn, gambler William Walters and golf champion Phil Mickelson for insider trading. Investigators are examining a series of successful trades by Walters and Mickelson of shares of… Read More
Government Swimming Upstream at Second Circuit Oral Argument on Downstream Insider Trading Liability
The Justice Department has been bullish over its rigorous enforcement of insider training over the past year, but on Tuesday a Second Circuit panel raised questions regarding the government’s theory of liability that led to the conviction of two “downstream” traders. Before the court was… Read More
Crisis Management: Law and PR
As readers of this blog know by now, my colleagues and I were members of the defense team that represented U.S. Army Brigadier General Jeffrey Sinclair. Our client faced a rare court-martial of a general officer at Fort Bragg, NC for allegedly sexually assaulting a… Read More