“An Atlanta, Texas, lawyer who was arrested last year by Texas Rangers for allegedly smuggling methamphetamine into the Cass County jail is now facing federal drug and weapons charges,” reports Lynn LaRowe in the Texarkana Gazette.

“A four-count indictment recently unsealed in the Marshall Division of the Eastern District of Texas alleges Bryan Lee Simmons, 49, is guilty of conspiracy to distribute meth from July 2019 through August 2019. Simmons was taken into custody at the Cass County jail Aug. 29, 2019.”

“Following his arrest in August 2019, Cass County District Attorney Courtney Shelton said Texas Rangers had been investigating and surveilling Simmons for at least a month. At that time, Simmons was arrested on state drug and weapons charges.”

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“The Indiana Supreme Court has imposed a 90-day suspension jointly proposed by the Disciplinary Commission and the respondent” Andrew Homan,  with automatic reinstatement following his conviction of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and several violations, reports Mike Frisch in Legal Profession Blog.

“Respondent was arrested for, and later pled guilty to, OWI. As a result of his refusal to comply with Indiana’s implied consent law at the time of his arrest, and later as a result of his conviction, Respondent’s license was suspended from May 2017 until July 2018. Respondent twice drove while his license was suspended. In addition, Respondent’s criminal probation was revoked after he was found in violation for consuming alcohol.”

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“Holland & Knight is facing a lawsuit alleging that it failed to prevent the transfer of more than $3 million to a fraudster’s account in Hong Kong,” reports Debra Cassens Weiss in ABA Journal’s News.

“The lawsuit, filed in June in Utah state court, was removed to federal court this week, the American Lawyer reports.”

Holland & Knight is accused of failing to investigate after the fraudster intercepted emails regarding a stock sale, posed as the seller, and instructed the law firm to wire $3.1 million from the stock buyer to another account. The new fraudulent account was identified as Wemakos Furniture Co. Limited.”

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Paul “Jake” York, an attorney in Georgia, is accused of forging not just a prosecutor’s signature but also a judge’s in the hopes of getting his client’s ankle monitor taken off. “York’s client, Valerie Ryals, was ordered to wear an electronic ankle monitor after she was arrested for aggravated stalking. That set back the single mom $380 every two weeks, and York believed the charges against his client would ultimately be dismissed, so he asked assistant District Attorney Meredith Davis to sign off on bond modification,” writes Kathryn Rubino in Above the Law’s Lethal Ethics.

“York filed an order that would allow his client to remove the ankle monitor that purported to be signed by ADA Davis and Habersham County, Georgia Superior Court Judge B. Chan Caudell. Only problem, Caudell does not recall that at all and wasn’t even able to sign the order the date it was dated.”

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“The now-deceased lawyer suspected of fatally shooting the son and seriously wounding the husband of U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas in New Jersey on Sunday may have been targeting at least one other judge in New York,” reports Anthony G. Attrino, NJ Advance Media for NJ.com Middlesex County.

Roy Den Hollander had a photo of that state’s Chief Judge Janet DiFiore in his car, her spokesman told NJ Advance Media on Tuesday.

“Den Hollander, a self-described anti-feminist lawyer, was found dead in his car of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in Rockland, New York, about a two-hour drive from the North Brunswick home of Salas, officials have said.”

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“St. Louis prosecutors recently charged attorneys Mark and Patricia McCloskey with ‘unlawful use of a weapon’ after their zany impromptu gun show a few weeks ago,” reports Joe Patrice in Above the Law’s Crime.

“Waving an AR-15 and a pistol at marchers passing by their house may confer hero status among the white grievance set, but in the real world it opens you up to felony charges. Luckily for them, Attorney General Eric Schmitt also gets his CLE credits from Tucker Carlson and he’s on a mission to end the politicization of the justice system by directly injecting himself into the process for purely political reasons.”

“The crux of Schmitt’s argument, outlined in a 12-page amicus brief, is that the Second Amendment protects every American’s right to brandish deadly weapons, the castle doctrine applied to the McCloskeys’ actions on their own property, and that any prosecution would chill others from trying to go Tony Montana on peaceful protestors.”

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“New York Attorney General Letitia James announced … that a group of female construction workers who experienced years of sexual harassment at a Long Island contracting firm will receive a $1.5 million settlement, after James’ office discovered not only harassment but retaliation for reporting it,” reports Rebecca Baird-Remba in Commercial Observer.

“James’ office found that the 18 women, the majority of whom are Black, endured a hostile and discriminatory work environment while working as general laborers for TradeOff, a Lynbrook, Long Island-based firm which provides nonunion labor for major construction sites across the city, including Hudson Yards.”

“Union representatives from Local 79 referred to TradeOff as a ‘body shop’ because it recruits most of its workers through prison reentry programs and pays them a fraction of what union laborers earn.”

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“Michael D. Cohen, President Trump’s onetime lawyer and fixer, was in good spirits on Thursday when he arrived at a Manhattan federal courthouse, where he expected to complete routine paperwork related to his home confinement amid the coronavirus pandemic,” reports Maggie Haberman, William K. Rashbaum and Nicole Hong in The New York Times.

“Mr. Cohen, who was released from prison in May on a medical furlough, was stunned when probation officers asked him to sign a document that would have barred him from speaking to reporters or publishing a book during the rest of his sentence, his legal adviser said.”

“Mr. Cohen, believing the agreement violated his First Amendment rights, refused to sign it, the adviser, Lanny Davis, said. Less than two hours later, federal marshals stepped out of an elevator with handcuffs and took Mr. Cohen back into custody.”

“Mr. Cohen’s return to jail was the latest twist in a case whose dizzying ups and downs have prolonged the legal woes of a man who once said he would take a bullet for Mr. Trump and later implicated the president in federal crimes.”

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“Deutsche Bank AG agreed Tuesday to pay a $150 million penalty to settle ‘significant compliance failures’ in its dealings with convicted sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein,” reports VOA News.

“The New York State Department of Financial Services said the bank did not properly monitor Epstein’s transactions, despite widespread public knowledge about his sexual misconduct.”

“It said Deutsche Bank’s failure led to its processing of hundreds of Epstein’s transactions that should have been more closely scrutinized, including payments to victims and law firms representing him and his accomplices.”

“The state regulator said Deutsche Bank also failed in its relationships with Danske Bank Estonia and FBME Bank by not properly monitoring their correspondent and clearing operations.”

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“Florida’s largest nursing home provider is again facing a quarter-billion-dollar judgment for fraud,” reported with updates in The St. Augustine Record by Ryan Mills Naples of the Naples News.

“An appeals court last week affirmed part of a jury’s finding that Consulate Health Care, which operates a tenth of all Florida nursing homes, systematically defrauded the government by providing medically unnecessary treatments to patients.”

“While calling the judgment ‘huge,’one industry watcher predicted that Consulate homes will continue operating, even if the company continues to appeal the ruling or files for bankruptcy.”

“Consulate, based in Maitland, a suburb of Orlando, owns about 70 of Florida’s 693 nursing homes, and operates in every metro area. In all, the privately held company owns and controls about 150 nursing homes and assisted living facilities, mostly in the Southeast and the Mid-Atlantic states.”

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“Harvey Weinstein and his former studio’s board have reached a nearly $19 million settlement with dozens of his sexual misconduct accusers, New York state’s attorney general and lawyers in a class-action lawsuit,” reported in MarketWatch’s Associated Press.

“The deal, if approved by judges in federal courts, would permit accusers to claim from $7,500 to $750,000 from the $18.8 million settlement.”

“The former Hollywood producer was convicted earlier this year of rape and sexual assault against two women. Accusations by dozens of women in 2017 destroyed his career and gave rise to #MeToo, the global movement to hold powerful men accountable for their sexual misconduct.”

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“Prosecutors contended attorney Keith Mitchell is a flight risk who should remain behind bars after he eluded authorities for more than 24 hours and potentially obstructed justice when he called four Toledo city councilmen after learning he and they were the targets of a federal bribery and corruption probe,” reports Allison Dunn in The Blade.

“Mr. Mitchell told a federal judge he thought the call he received Tuesday morning by an FBI agent informing him of his pending criminal charges was nothing more than a prank, hence his refusal to disclose his location during the call — and his subsequent contact with his four co-defendants.”

“But the call, it turned out, was no prank. And even though U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Helmick on Wednesday declined prosecutors’ request and released Mr. Mitchell from custody, the long-time lawyer with deep community ties nows joins city councilmen Yvonne Harper, Tyronne Riley, Larry Sykes, and Gary Johnson, in a precarious position: free on bond, but very much under scrutiny as the federal government embarks on what could be the largest public corruption prosecution in northwest Ohio history.”

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“Drug company Hoffmann-La Roche (OTCMKTS – RHHBY) falsified scientific conclusions and mounted a high-powered marketing and lobbying campaign to deceive the government about the effectiveness of Tamiflu (oseltamivir) for fighting a flu pandemic, according to new filings in a federal False Claims Act lawsuit. The case seeks to recover more than $1.4 billion of taxpayer dollars that the federal government wrongly spent to add Tamiflu to the Strategic National Stockpile,” reports Lanier Law Firm in Herald Mail Media’s State News.

“In a highly anticipated response to Roche’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit, whistleblower Dr. Thomas Jefferson alleges that Roche was aware that studies didn’t show that Tamiflu could protect individuals from acquiring influenza, reduce contagiousness of those infected or treat secondary symptoms. At best, studies have found that Tamiflu might slightly shorten the duration of flu symptoms.”

“The federal Food and Drug Administration repeatedly denied Roche’s efforts in the early 2000s to approve Tamiflu for pandemic use. According to the latest filings by whistleblower lawyers at The Lanier Law Firm and Halunen Law, once thwarted by the FDA, Roche began a campaign to fund, produce and publish misleading medical journal articles to create the appearance that Tamiflu would be effective at responding to a flu pandemic. The global conglomerate then used those studies and articles to create a false narrative for marketing and to lobby the CDC and Congress. As alleged, federal and state governments purchased tens of millions of doses of Tamiflu for the Strategic National Stockpile based on Roche’s misrepresentations.”

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“The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit this week reinstated part of a False Claims Act (FCA) verdict that was overturned in 2018, issuing a judgment of more than $255 against two skilled nursing facilities, two related entities providing management services at the facilities, and an affiliated company providing rehabilitation services,” reports Maggie Flynn in Skilled Nursing News’ Fraud.

“The original judgment of roughly $350 million was thrown out by U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday, who argued that the claims were not enough to merit such an amount.”

Registered nurse Angela Ruckh brought the qui tam action against multiple companies alleging “that the defendants violated the False Claims Act by misrepresenting the services provided to Medicare beneficiaries, while also failing to comply with specific Medicaid requirements.”

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“A woman whose step-son, an attorney, stole $558,371.13 from her was not entitled to a directed verdict in a case in which she blames her ex-husband for the loss based on his failure to alert her that his son by a previous marriage was addicted to gambling, Div. Three of the Fourth District Court of Appeal held yesterday,” reports a MetNews Staff Writer in Metropolitan News-Enterprise.

“Plaintiff Wendy Sawyer contended that her former spouse, retired lawyer Stephen D. Sawyer, had a fiduciary duty to her in mid-2015—when he allegedly learned of the gambling and stealing—because he was a partner in the law firm of Sawyer & Sawyer to which she was paying a monthly retainer of $25,000. Had she been told of the thievery at that time, she argued, she could have blocked the losses, most of which occurred in 2015.”

“She did not find out about the stepson’s filching until the following year.”

“Joining her as plaintiffs were five of her companies, which had been represented by the step-son, Jason R. Sawyer.”

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“Wirecard AG’s former chief executive officer was detained by Munich prosecutors after 1.9 billion euros ($2.1 billion) went missing from the digital-payment company, in a scandal that has rattled Germany’s financial industry,” report Karin Matussek, Sarah Syed and Bloomberg in Fortune’s International.

“Markus Braun, who resigned last week, turned himself in Monday evening in Munich as part of a probe into the company’s accounting practices, prosecutors said in an e-mailed statement. A judge will review whether he can be kept in custody Tuesday afternoon.”

“The company is fighting for survival after acknowledging the missing funds probably don’t exist. The payment processor said it’s in discussions with creditors and is considering a full-scale restructuring after pulling its financial results for fiscal 2019 and the first quarter of 2020.”

“In less than a week, the fintech company once hyped as the future of German finance has lost most of its market value.”

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“A Morristown lawyer lied about making campaign contributions to Mount Arlington officials in 2016, a year before her firm was awarded a ‘lucrative contract’ with the borough, according to law enforcement officials,” reports Fred J. Aun in Tap into Roxbury’s Law & Justice.

“The lawyer, Elizabeth Valandingham, 47, of Morristown, now faces up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to $150,000 if convicted, said the state Attorney General’s Office on Friday.”

“Mount Arlington required that Valandingham certify her law firm ‘made no reportable political contributions in the year preceding the award of the contract.’ Valandingham made that certification and the borough subsequently ‘awarded the firm a lucrative contract, earning the firm in excess of $470,000.”

“The charges allege Valandingham actually donated $7,500 to Mount Arlington officials in 2016 and used ‘straw donors’ to do so surreptitiously.”

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“The law partner of the tax attorney believed to be a cooperating witness in a sweeping New Jersey pay-to-play corruption investigation has been charged with lying about thousands in political contributions made to secure lucrative municipal contracts,” reports Ted Sherman in NJ.com’s Politics.

“Elizabeth Valandingham, 47, was accused by the state Attorney General’s office of falsely claiming that her firm had not made any reportable contributions to candidates in two towns where the firm had been vying to provide legal services — when in fact it had.”

“Valandingham was a partner of Matthew O’Donnell, the Morristown tax attorney who reportedly served as an undercover informant in the wide-ranging state sting that led to charges in December against five people, including elected and former officials and political candidates. They were accused of taking tens of thousands in bribes disguised as campaign contributions in return for steering legal work to a law firm that multiple sources have said was O’Donnell McCord.”

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“A no bail arrest warrant has been issued for a prominent immigration attorney in Utah whose increasingly erratic behavior, according to police and prosecutors, culminated with him making terroristic threats against his wife in addition to making several bizarre statements,” reports Pat Reavy in KSL’s Utah News.

“Aaron Tarin, 40, of Herriman, was arrested three times over two weeks in late May through June. On Thursday he was charged in 3rd District Court with making a terroristic threat, a second-degree felony, and stalking, a third-degree felony.”

“According to charging documents, Tarin’s ex-wife reported to police that Tarin was engaging in ‘concerning behavior’ from May 18 to May 29, including sending her ‘multiple angry emails and videos … that talked about a ‘leprechaun chase’ and that ‘everybody needs to be ready for it.'”

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“The Law Offices of Jeffrey Lohman has faced some significant setbacks in litigation with Navient purporting that Lohman’s office set up TCPA lawsuits in violation of RICO. While no substantive ruling has been entered in that suit yet, the Court has at least preliminarily found that emails between Lohman and his clients are discoverable pursuant to the crime-fraud exception to the A/C privilege,” reports Eric J. Troutman in

“But Lohman’s office had a better day … in a suit in federal court in Missouri.”

“The Johnson case is quite different from the Navient matter in that it is not a RICO case and does not directly challenge Lohman’s (alleged) conduct of encouraging folks to stop payment to create possible TCPA lawsuits. Rather the suit involves the relationship between Lohman and something called Burlington Financial Group, which allegedly took $2,500.00 from the Plaintiff for debt services it (allegedly) never provided.”

“Lohman’s role in the overall transaction appears to be pretty limited.”

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