New York Criminal Defense Blog

You always felt like social media was a good way to interact with your friends and keep people involved in your life. It was fun, it was simple and you enjoyed it. You never thought much about what you posted or what people thought of it.

That is, you never thought about it until you got accused of a crime. Suddenly, you started worrying about everything you'd ever written. Could people use it in court? What would come back to haunt you? Had you forgotten completely about a post that would make you look very guilty -- whether you were actually guilty or not?

Residents in New York and across the United States were aware that for a series of days, officials were reported to have intercepted multiple packages mailed to prominent persons. The contents of these packages were potential bombs and the intended recipients were all democratic politicians or well-known supporters of democratic politicians and the democratic party.

As reported by CNN, there were a total of 13 packages that are said to have been mailed with the intent of harming or killing the people to whom they were addressed. The official complaint refers to the contents of each package as an improvised explosive device. Of the 13 packages, two are said to have contained evidence that directed law enforcement officers to the person who they have since placed under arrest in conjunction with these devices and mailings.

When one is accused of embezzlement in New York, many might automatically assign guilt to them based on the assumption that charges would not be made without sufficient evidence to support them. Yet the fact is that an alleged embezzlement offense (or any financial crime, for that matter) might have several layers to it that might skew the lines between simple judgment errors to gross misconduct. It is for this reason that those accused of such crimes should not be viewed as culpable until all the facts pertaining to case have been revealed. 

Even in the face of seeming overwhelming evidence, judgment should be withheld until the appropriate moment. That the case of a now-former Microsoft executive. The man helped to broker the deal that allowed the software giant to partner with the National Football League in allowing the latter to use the former's products in its gameday operations. As a result of the partnership, Microsoft bought several tickets to the Super Bowl, which representatives from the NFL provided to the man assuming that he would distribute them to the appropriate parties. Instead, the man sold the tickets and pocketed the proceeds. It has also been alleged that he fraudulently billed for over $1.5 million in marketing services that were never provided and received payment for said services from third-party vendors and promotional providers. Microsoft investigated his actions and later fired him. He now faces federal fraud and embezzlement charges. 

The notion of "Club Fed" refers to federal prisons that are perceived to be more like resorts than penitentiaries, with those "detained" inside enjoying the same lavish amenities they did on the outside. The common school of thought is that anyone convicted of a white collar crime in New York would be sent to such a place. While there are different levels of security in the prison system (which can be reflected in what is available to inmates), the notion that all white collar criminal activity earns one an all-expenses paid trip to Club Fed is simply false. 

Data compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation shows the arrest rate for white collar crime to be 5,317 for every 100,000 people. Those 5317 offenses will likely differ in gravity and scope, and the penalties imposed for them may show that difference. Many white collar offenses are prosecuted at the federal level, and even those that are not may still follow federal sentencing guidelines. The question then becomes what are such guidelines?