Healthcare fraud takes many forms – often with attempts to defraud the government or insurance entities by filing false claims. The government (and as a result, the taxpayers) are clearly victimized – but what about the patients who are the unwitting pawns in such a scheme? Recently, a father-son team was convicted for their role […]
Martin Shkreli, the guy everyone loves to hate, was recently sentenced for securities fraud last week in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. He became well-known after he inexplicably and sharply raised the price of an essential HIV drug, Daraprim. As CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, Shkreli raised the price from […]
For at least a year now, the people of the United States have been following (sometimes with glee) the investigation into allegations that the Russian government has meddled in our electoral process. Questions of the Trump campaign’s involvement continue to be asked. Robert Mueller continues to investigate, and so far, 19 individuals have been charged […]
One of the primary elements a prosecutor must prove in attempting to convict a defendant of any crime is that the defendant had the required state of mind (called mens rea.) This means that the defendant either intended to commit the crime, or was so reckless about their conduct that the result was inevitable. These […]
Everyone has a nightmare rental story, whether it be living with psychotic roommates or dealing with an unreasonable landlord. Disputes over repairs, returns of security deposits or even tenant safety are the usual complaints. But recently, a man in Brooklyn showed that sometimes landlords know no limits when trying to run their tenants out of […]
This blog has covered a lot of white-collar and health care crime recently. Today, we shake things up (perhaps only slightly) by covering a case that combines white collar, health care, and basic crimes all in one. In light of the #metoo movement, allegations of sexual assault and harassment are everywhere. Unfortunately, in this case, […]
The Eighth Amendment assures U.S. citizens that they will not be subject to cruel and unusual punishment if they are convicted of a crime. This amendment has been extensively litigated, with dozens of cases reaching the Supreme Court. Recently, one state has decided to remove the death penalty. The Federal government is also considering changing […]
The old adage goes, “power corrupts but absolute power corrupts absolutely.” This cliche is apropros to the country’s law enforcement if the headlines have anything to do with it. Police officers swear to serve and protect, but the temptation of fast money in exchange for bad policing can overpower a select few. There have been […]
It seems like a running joke that anyone’s big dream, if they achieve something, is always to go to Disney World. In Manhattan, one person was so determined to make this dream come true, that she was recently indicted for stealing over $2.6 million from her employer, and treated herself to her own trip to […]
While district attorneys are locally elected, rather than appointed, it makes sense to think of them as politicians. However, they also have the unique role of having to be an objective individual, who prosecutes on behalf of the state and his or her constituents – not beholden to any political party or lobbying group. The […]