51–60 of 106 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I would do 3 years for $100MM. I would do the next three years for $100MM, and they're pretty important years in my family! Someone offer me $100MM to be imprisoned for the next three years; I will put my money where my mouth is on this.
I'll do it for $90MM though, pick me! Pick me!
It's worth noting that both Kathryn Keneally, the assistant attorney general mentioned in this article, and Kevin Downing, the lead prosecutor that got him jailed, both now work for private law firms helping large corporations shelter their taxes.
A little more detail from a neutral source on why Birkenfeld was jailed: http://content.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1928897...
Conversely, the DoJ's defence, against as portrayed in the article, seems oddly nebulous, and in light of the later IRS decision, probably flat out wrong.
Most odd.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> [...] this guy confessed. Yes, he did, but after: > All I asked for in return was a subpoena or immunity. They said no. I wonder realistically how long can you drag this out as a whistleblower? How many times can you say "I'll give you these people if you don't charge me", especially when your document stash is well hidden.
It sort of looks like this bank exec traded 3 years in minimum security prison for more money than any of us could ever use in a lifetime. I'm pretty OK with that precedent!
1) Deserved the money
2) Did not deserve prison.
You can't equate those.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
You're undervaluing time spent locked up.
Federal prison camps are not that terrible: https://www.bop.gov/about/facilities/federal_prisons.jsp Think of it like a three-year, $100 million sabbatical "upstate." That is enough time to read through the great books. Room and board are covered and there is a commissary for personal items.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Federal prison camps are not that terrible: https://www.bop.gov/about/facilities/federal_prisons.jsp Think of it like a three-year, $100 million sabbatical "upstate." That is enough time to read through the great books. Room and board are covered and there is a commissary for personal items.
Not that terrible compared to other prisons. Compared to freedom, though, not so not-that-terrible.
Remember: the premise here is that once you do your bit, you're set for life.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
"There is a rational case to make for someone being both fully culpable for wrongdoing while still remaining entitled to bounties they've satisfied." Not really. Throwing them in jail sends the message that whistleblowing is looked down upon, and thus fewer people will do it. If the whistleblower doesn't have immunity from prosecution, the only way for them really to blow the whistle is to confess to a crime.
The mistake he made was implicating himself in a crime without getting the deal first. He should have gone in and said "I can testify to criminal behavior, but only if you'll give me immunity." That's probably what his bosses did.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
You're undervaluing time spent locked up.
Federal prison camps are not that terrible: https://www.bop.gov/about/facilities/federal_prisons.jsp Think of it like a three-year, $100 million sabbatical "upstate." That is enough time to read through the great books. Room and board are covered and there is a commissary for personal items.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It sort of looks like this bank exec traded 3 years in minimum security prison for more money than any of us could ever use in a lifetime. I'm pretty OK with that precedent!
I'm not. As near as I can tell from objective sources , Birkenfeld: 1) Deserved the money 2) Did not deserve prison. You can't equate those.