white collar crime

February 15, 2017

Bank Fraud in Chicago: White Collar Theft

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

The crime of bank fraud is sometimes thought of as being harmless given the fact that it involves big powerful corporations and rarely involves any violence. However, the courts take it seriously and are quite capable of imposing significant penalties for it. The technical definitions of the crime include the illegal acquisition of assets, money or property by any entity or institution through deceit and dishonesty. Given the concern about an implied leniency against white collar offenders, bank fraud has sometimes been elevated to the level of a federal crime.

According to the Bank Fraud Act, the prosecution is free to label and pursue the crime depending on the amounts involved and the method that was used. A level of sophistication as well as conspiracy will always be aggravating factors. On the other hand, the court will also consider the victim impact statements. Although the media coverage may often be sensationalist, the courts are at pains to demonstrate that they are bound by the sentencing guidelines as well as the facts as examined from the viewpoint of giving as much weight as possible to the intention of the legislature when the law was enacted.

Developing a Theory and Practical Basis for a Defense

November 4, 2016

Bribery in Chicago: A City of Pay for Play

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

Chicago has never been able to quite shake off its sometimes unwarranted reputation as a corruption center in the USA. Take the case of a city insider who has been sentenced to 10 years in jail for taking bribes in a scandal that ironically involved jumping red light cameras. The appropriately named John Bills is not alone in the long list of high ranking and low ranking government officials who soon find that they are in need of an excellent criminal defense attorney. The scale of the case and the sentencing are fairly atypical. The court heart that Mr. Bills took up to $2 million in euphemistically labelled “gifts.” His services included sending large red light camera contracts to Redflex Traffic Systems Inc., a company based in Arizona.

If you are looking for the key ingredients of bribery then this case is as good as any in terms of demonstrating them. First of all you have someone in a position of authority who uses that authority to illegally secure pecuniary advantage in exchange for abusing his offices. There are elements of discriminatory and unlawful behavior which means that certain bids for tenders are never treated fairly for no other reason than the fact that they did not pay the authorizing officer a bribe. Such a crime reduces public confidence in the system and judges are particularly harsh in exercising their discretion. Of course it is possible to reduce the maximum sentence if there are mitigating factors. Some of those mitigating factors include an early confession, cooperation with the police, restitution, and examples of good public works.

The Dangers of Plea Bargaining

November 2, 2016

Embezzlement in Chicago: Unjust Enrichment Under Public Focus

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

Whenever another story comes in, there is shock from the legal and non-legal community. Even as the defendant desperately seeks an attorney; the prosecutor is working full-time to ensure a conviction and an exemplary sentence. The annals of embezzlement in Chicago include the relatively recent case of Caryn Benson, a former Field Museum employee who managed to embezzle up to $400,000 without getting noticed. Even as the case its case made its way through the courts, there was a lot of interest from the legal community in terms of establishing the technicalities of the crime and the responses of the court. Museums are normally places of leisure and cultural enlightenment. One would not expect large-scale and sustained thefts to be taking place there over a period of ten years.

Interestingly, Benson admitted to only half a million whereas the employer protested that the figure was closer to one million. In the event a compromise was reached on the understanding that the culprit would be spending some time in jail. The guidelines are in the range of 35-40 months, a penalty that some may consider to be harsh given the fact that the courts have handled cases of large scale corporate fraud that has led to the loss of millions. The aggravating circumstances in this case include the fact that the crime took over a long period of time and the defendant had been in a position of trust. The negotiation for a plea agreement is an interesting lesson for defense attorneys where the facts of the case indicate that a long drawn out trial may not yield the results that the prosecutor is looking for. This puts the defense at an advantage and in this case the attorney got the best possible deal for the client.

Understanding the Legal Ramifications of Embezzlement

October 19, 2016

Credit Card Fraud in Chicago: Living on the Legal Edge

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

Credit card fraud is becoming the crime of choice for offenders in Chicago who are not particularly inclined to violence. If undetected, the crime can be staggeringly lucrative and often does not carry the stigma of outright theft, sexual depravity, or violence. It is tempting to cast credit card fraudsters as low-level miscreants who do not deserve the worst approbation of society. However this is not a victimless crime, as residents of Minooka will testify. The South West side of Chicago seems to have developed a particularly affinity for this specific economic crime. Although the law enforcement agencies have already sent out the alarm to the local population; they are not clear about what exactly causes this locality to have a higher than usual propensity for the crime.

The fraud will take a number of forms which are increasing in their complexity and scope. For example some people engage in identity fraud and impersonation. Unsuspecting victims will only realize that they have been caught in the web when they are sent a bill for goods and services that they never purchased. The fraudster will have used the victim’s identity in order to make a fraudulent application for a credit line and will proceed onto an expansive spending spree. At other times the perpetrator is far more subtle; getting the details of the card and using it to make online purchases. When the card is physically stolen, most victims will make a police report, but hardly anything ever comes out of that process because of the difficulty of tracing the culprits and the relatively low individual amounts that are involved in each incident of credit card fraud.

It is a Systemic and Structural Issue

December 25, 2015

‘Tis the Season for Credit Card Fraud Charges

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

The holiday season always sees a rise in property crimes, as people become even more desperate trying to “keep up with the Joneses,” or just trying to provide a decent holiday season for their family. Whatever the reason, much of the fraudulent activity on credit cards throughout the year occurs during the holiday season, so it is a good time to review the various prohibited behavior.

Illinois Credit Card Fraud Laws

The Illinois statute prohibiting credit card fraud prohibits and penalizes many different crimes, all of which stem from the wrongful possession, use, or sale of a credit or debit card. All of the following are prohibited by law:

September 25, 2015

Money Laundering Charges are More Common Than You Think in Illinois

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

If you are accused of money laundering, the government is alleging that you committed some act to disguise the origins of illegally obtained money, with the goal of “washing” the money and making it into legitimate money. People are accused of money laundering in a variety of circumstances, but an easy example to help you understand is from the television show Breaking Bad. The main character amasses a pile of money from the production and sale of crystal methamphetamine. He then purchases a car wash to launder the “meth” money and “cook the books” to make the money legitimate. That is one way people are accused of attempting to launder money, but there are others.

Money Laundering Charges are a Big Deal

If you are charged with money laundering, you are facing federal criminal charges. The federal government charges people suspected of money laundering under a number of different statutes, including the Federal Money Laundering Control Act and sometimes the Patriot Act.