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I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

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Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#91
post #27

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.

What if they were the last three years of your life?

A much tougher decision.

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#92
post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This would make for an interesting loser pays auction.

if you assume a 4-5% return on the money, only want to live off the returns (not the principal) and "six figures" (say, $250,000) is enough as yearly, net income...the lowest a person would go is about USD$6.7MM (after tax, of course)

In the US ;)

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#93
post #56
post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not that terrible compared to other prisons. Compared to freedom, though, not so not-that-terrible.

If I had to choose between a minimum security federal prison and 3-4 long-distance airline flights a week and living out of hotels (a not-unusual travel burden for the kinds of people who make 7 figures a year reliably), I would have absolutely no trouble picking "prison". Remember: the premise here is that once you do your bit, you're set for life.

You're kind of set for life either way.

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's the elephant in the room, textbook revolving door regulatory capture.

So, let's ignore the SEC here for a second (which truly is a mess): These folks are tax lawyers. They obey every ethical restriction placed on them by the state bars. If they quit the federal government, where exactly are they to go to have a job?

The narrowness of career paths for highly specialized attorneys combined with the possibility of entering an altogether different remuneration universe at the law firms the DOJ is theoretically adversarial to is what makes the revolving door spin, and the spinning of the door is what turns "adversarial" into "theoretically adversarial". That is the problem. I didn't say there was an easy solution.

The generalization of this principal to other government institutions (agencies, departments, offices including even the presidency) is one of the great problems of governance of our time. You can take the remuneration discrepancy as the "0=1" conclusion of a reductio ad absurdum argument against unfettered capitalism or as an argument that resistance is futile.

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd add that $100M makes it easier, a felony conviction, especially at the federal level is no joke.

I used to see ads on TV for pardoning services, that implied that they could restore your ability to travel. Does anyone know if those actually work? If they do, then you might really be clear and free with a bit less than $100MM after, say, 5 years.

Federal charges can only be pardoned by the president, are limited in number, and don't expunge your record with very few exceptions. You still need to report the conviction, and still need to ask various states for "forgiveness" to restore your rights.

Personally, I'd stick to the PowerBall for a get rich quick dream.

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#96
post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What if they were the last three years of your life?

A much tougher decision.

Before taking your million dollar choice I'd suggest a trial period of a month or so in jail. Maybe you'll see things in a different light after that.

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#98
post #76

Whistle blowing is a total crap shoot. We'd have much more of it if that wasn't the case.

If the data you provide is so damning you don't even need to prove that you're a reliable source, then you could submit it anonymously, as an encrypted block along with a public key to decrypt it. Then, if things look favorable, you can step forward and prove your identity by supplying the matching private-key. I expect the problem is that first "if" -- authorities may want to be super-sure of the origin of the infor…

I'm not sure if that would satisfy the legal requirements of the wistleblower statutes. Plus, I don't see how that protects you once you do come forward as the source. So likely you'd end up with all the downsides without any of the upsides.

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#99
post #57
post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

It should be either-or. Either you take the time and the money, or you get off with a warning and don't make a dime from the IRS.

Why? Without that money, what's the incentive to blow the whistle? Not to mention that most whistleblowers are blacklisted, so they have a difficult time finding work after doing so. If they don't get that money, they'll likely end up under a bridge somewhere.

Re: I Won $104M for Blowing the Whistle But Was the Only One Who Went to Jail

#100
post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This would make for an interesting loser pays auction.

if you assume a 4-5% return on the money, only want to live off the returns (not the principal) and "six figures" (say, $250,000) is enough as yearly, net income...the lowest a person would go is about USD$6.7MM (after tax, of course)

I'd do it for a cool million, possibly less. There's plenty of places around the US, let alone the world, where returns around $50,000 yearly or less would provide a comfortable life. Add the ability to supplement that with whatever work you care to perform and you can be more than comfortable.

EDIT: On further thought, I'd go for much less, I think. It's really just a comparison the money offered against A) the amount I'd expect to earn in those 3 years, B) expected loss of lifetime income due to the time lost and/or resulting stigmas, and C) personal discomfort/inconvenience of the lockup time.

Hard to figure the latter two, but I expect even half a million would tip the balance in my case.

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