STATEMENT OF THE ISSUE Congress amended Title 18, United States Code, § 1512(c)(2) of the Victim and Witness Protection Act to provide additional protection to witnesses in ongoing investigations. The statute criminalizes "whoever corruptly… obstructs, influences, or impedes any official proceeding." 18 U.S.C. § 1512(c)(2) (2012). The question presented is whether the broad language of § 1512(c)(2) suggests that an "official proceeding" encompasses a joint-task force investigation, pursuant to Congressional intent. STATEMENT OF THE CASE The Appellant, Bethany Albescu ("Albescu"), was convicted of and indicted for corruptly obstructing, influencing, or impeding an official proceeding, in violation of § 1512(c)(2). JA1. Specifically, Albescu learned of a U.S. Immigration and Custom agency's ("ICE") and U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency's ("CBP") joint-task force investigation into a crime ring involving internet auction fraud. JA9. Albescu was partially involved in that crime ring. JA3:12-14. Albescu was a sales associate at a high-end women's boutique, "Center," in Charleston, South Carolina. JA3:11-12. She was discovered as a link to the "stolen goods portion of the auction fraud ring" because of her …show more content…
Subsequently, Valentina shut down multiple eBay accounts suspected to be involved in the crime ring and rid of "over a thousand counterfeit bags." JA6:18-20. Albescu's intention behind the warning was to protect Valentina from any prosecutorial efforts and criminal liability. JA10. The result of Albescu's actions were severe to the CBP-ICE joint-task force investigation. See JA7:2-3. The evidence lost was significant and could have been used to prosecute not only domestic actors, but also to link the domestic activity with the Romanian crime organization. JA10. Albescu's actions served as the basis for conviction of obstructing justice under § 1512(c)(2).
Another cash larceny scheme that could have been committed was reversing transactions or revering entries. By stealing funds, Sachdeva and Mulvaney could have gone back into...
following the Trial in the District Court for the District of Maryland question whether the district court gathered legit evidence on Ronald Pelton due to Electronic Surveillance conducted pursuant to the Foreign Intelligence Act.-("Ronald w. pelton,," 1987) the petitioner Ronald William Pelton was convicted of committing espionage and attempted espionage, due to this conviction Ronald received concurrent life sentencing on the espionage and conspiracy counts and a concurrent ten year sentence on the unauthorized- disclosure count.("Ronald w. pelton,," 1987)
Probably No. Under Ohio Duty of Care Owed to Trespasser Statute, an owner is liable if he knows of possible children trespassing and the artificial condition on the property creates unreasonable risk that children do not realize, when the burden to eliminate the risk is slight, and the owner fails to exercise reasonable care to eliminate that risk. In this case, Oleg Burov left the hot tub unlocked and only covered it with a thermal blanket. Burov, the last person on the property, knew of possible trespass on the property after spotting wet towels, relocation of the metal table, and traces of bicycle tires on his property. The evidence gave Burov a reason to believe that minors might have entered his property. Moreover, the hot tub on the property
In 2008, Luis M. Sanchez Valle was charged by the federal courts with trafficking weapons and ammunition in interstate commerce, and then was charged for the same offense by the Puerto Rican Courts. After Valle was convicted in federal, he filed a motion to dismiss the Puerto Rican Court’s ruling, saying it violated his 5th Amendment right to protection from Double Jeopardy. The prosecution argued that the United States and Puerto Rico derive their authority from different sources, and therefore can punish the same offenses without breaking his constitutional protections against double jeopardy. The case went through the trial court and then the court of appeals, which both agreed with Valle. It is now moving on to the Supreme Court.
Rothstein) were indicted for conspiracy to defraud the public. All were acquitted for want of
Lawrence, J.M. “Judge Ok’s Suites vs. Crooked Feds.” Boston Herald 18 Sept. 2004. 6 April 2005
Mr. LePape is a 46 year old individual, born and raised in Reunion, France. The father reported that he attended public school in France and graduated in 1985. He attended a culinary institute in France, graduating in 1987. Mr. LePape stated that he has worked as a chef as well as other capacities in restaurants. He currently owns a restaurant in Wilkes Barre, PA.
Well written procedures, rules, and regulation provide the cornerstone for effectively implementing policies within the criminal justice system. During the investigational process, evidence collected is subjected to policies such as Search and Seizure, yet, scrutinized by the Exclusionary Rule prior to the judicial proceeding. Concurrent with criminal justice theories, evidence collected must be constitutionally protected, obtained in a legal and authorized nature, and without violations of Due Process. Although crime and criminal activities occur, applicability of policies is to ensure accountability for deviant behaviors and to correct potentially escalation within social communities It is essential the government address such deviant behavior, however, equally important is the protection of the accused which also must become a priority when investigating criminal cases.
In 2011, two former employees for the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and an official from a small business Eyak Technology LLC were indicted on federal charges that included bribery, wire fraud, money laundering and unlawful kickbacks. In order to help better understand the details of the charges against these men, a closer look at the responsibility the individuals involved held with regard to the federal government is paramount. The suspects from USACE; Alexander Michael and Kerry Khan were programs managers at the time of said crime. Alexander Michael who was employed with USACE since 1979, was responsible for the USACE Directorate of Contingency Operations and had authority to secure funding for the USACE projects, this included
One contradiction in the job of the prosecutor is that they have nearly limitless direction in critical matters; however, prosecutors’ are also held to a very high ethical standard. Prosecutors must screen cases to determine which ones need to be prosecuted; nevertheless, this is the source of controversy with most people. “What makes charging decisions more intriguing and controversial is the fact that in making this decision, the prosecutor has nearly limitless discretion” (Hemmens, Brody, & Spohn, 2013). This means the prosecutor’s charging decisions are beyond any judicial review, so it must be apparent that a prosecutor
Bryan Stevenson is a public-interest lawyer who has spent his life committed to help those in need – primarily focusing on mass incarceration, racial issues, death penalty, and child incarceration. Stevenson has won court cases for many clients whether they were children, mentally ill, or wrongly convicted – and has even battled cases in front of the United States Supreme Court. His most recent, and monumental, win was a ruling that life-without-parole is unconstitutional for children who are seventeen years old and younger. Stevenson is a professor Law at the New York University School of Law and also a public speaker who hopes to bring knowledge about racial inequalities, past and present, to communities everywhere (“EJI” 2016).
Next, one must identify whether Ms. Bale “prejudice[d] the effective conduct of an SIO”. As her story unintentionally exposed an SIO, it almost certainly resulted in the operation’s interruption, as any potential leads from the embassy were compromised due to media attention. As such, Ms. Bale’s actions prejudiced the SIO. However, in considering the legislative intent and context of the Act, “recent, high profile international events” motivated the government to institute greater penalties for intentionally disclosing classified information, especially those related to national security. Based on this statement, and the media coverage at that time, it is likely that the Senate was referring the 2013 Snowden affair, in which a former NSA contractor
fraud – three in the Rigas family, two other executives held, accused of mass looting. The
United States. Department of Justice. "MEMORANDUM TO GENERAL COUNSELS." Washington, D.C: Office of Legal Counsel. 28 June 1995. <http://clinton2.nara.gov/WH/EOP/OP/html/aa/ap-b.html>
In 2009, the National Research Council issued a congressional report which called for major reforms of the entire forensic science system around the country.39 The report called for mandatory training and certifications for forensic analysts, tougher laboratory standards, improved protocols for investigating evidence, and more scientifically reliable and established forensic methods for analysis. Furthermore, the report recommended appropriate funding, staff and proper management of the forensic science labaratories.40 According to Harry Edwards, Chief Judge Emeritus of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, a judicial review by it self would not be enough to fix the widespread problems prevalent in the crime labs. A much stronger and resilient governance is necessary to promote superior administration in the forensic science community and to repair the county’s fractured forensic system.41 The congressional report strongly