Pardons, Commutations and Dropped Prosecutions |

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“… Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, told reporters this month that the conviction of Mr. Gentile was a “weaponization of justice” inflicted by the Biden administration.

But there is no evidence that any part of Mr. Gentile’s case was politically motivated. The Justice Department’s investigation began under Mr. Trump’s presidency in 2019, and Judge Rachel Kovner, who later presided over the case, was appointed by Mr. Trump.

One of Mr. Gentile’s partners in GPB, Jeffry Schneider — who was convicted at the same time and sentenced to six years in federal prison — does not appear to have been granted clemency. Another partner, Jeffrey Lash, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and testified against Mr. Gentile and Mr. Schneider at trial, and was sentenced in September to time served.

The three men founded GPB Capital in 2012. They told investors that they would use their money to buy companies — predominantly car dealerships — that were doing well, and use the income to pay out monthly distributions at a rate of 8 percent of the initial investment, with a good chance of a higher return.

As it turned out, the companies Mr. Gentile and his partners purchased weren’t doing well enough to pay out such high distributions, federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York said at trial. Starting in 2015, the firm started paying out some of the distributions with money from new investors, a technique used in Ponzi schemes….”

The article implies but doesn’t provide any clear evidence, that this pardon was done at the behest of or otherwise on behalf of the Church of Scientology, which has supported Trump.
 

Trump’s pardons wipe out payments to defrauded victims​

In addition to clearing prison sentences, the president’s clemency actions have erased millions in restitution payments.

🎁 —> https://wapo.st/4s6dziJ

“… At least 20 people who have received clemency from Trump so far this year — cutting their sentence short, restoring their civil rights after imprisonment or allowing them to avoid prison altogether — were also forgiven of financial penalties totaling tens of millions of dollars.

Some of these offenders owed money to real-life victims of fraud. Marian Morgan, for example, was sentenced in 2013 to nearly 34 years in prison for running a Ponzi scheme and was ordered to pay $17.5 million to dozens of investors, most of which remains unpaid. In 2021, she filed a statement in court saying, “I want to pay restitution to my victims so they know I am truly sorry for the damage I caused.” But in May, Trump commuted her sentence “to time served with no further fines, restitution, probation or other conditions.”

In other cases where Trump granted clemency, the federal government was the main victim. Paul Walczak, a health care executive and convicted tax cheat, was sentenced in April to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay over $4 million to the Internal Revenue Service. Walczak had pleaded guilty to tax crimes and agreed to pay restitution to the IRS, according to court filings. His pardon came through just 12 days after his sentencing, relieving him of his financial obligations and sparing him from going to prison….”
 
nycfan said:

Inside the New Fast Track to a Presidential Pardon​

Lobbyists close to Trump say their going rate to advocate for a pardon is $1 million​


🎁 —> https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy...5?st=zcVy1o&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
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“… Zhao was one of the beneficiaries of a new, informal path to presidential pardons that has become a feature of Trump’s second term, which allows some clemency applicants with deep pockets or politically connected lobbyists to circumvent the traditional pardon process.

… The clemency for Zhao was one in a series of pardons in recent months that have surprised even some of the president’s closest advisers. This month alone, Trump pardoned a former Honduran president, Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been convicted of conspiring with cartels to ship 400 tons of cocaine to the U.S.; a Texas Democrat, Henry Cuellar, charged with taking nearly $600,000 in foreign bribes; and a sports executive, Tim Leiweke, who had been indicted by Trump’s own Justice Department. The men have previously denied wrongdoing.

Trump pardoned Hernández so quickly that White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and other senior officials had no advance notice—and even Roger Stone, a longtime Trump ally who had been pushing for the pardon, told people he was stunned by Trump’s speed. Stone said he wasn’t paid for his advocacy, which he said came after he had reviewed the case.

Trump had asked aides for months if Cuellar would flip to the Republican Party if he pardoned him, according to people familiar with the conversations. He hasn’t switched parties.…”
 

Trump pardoning Puerto Rico's former governor Wanda Vázquez, sources say​


www.cbsnews.com

Trump pardoning Puerto Rico's former governor Wanda Vázquez, sources say

Puerto Rico's former governor Wanda Vázquez was previously indicted in a federal corruption case.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com

“President Trump plans to pardon Puerto Rico's former governor, Wanda Vázquez Garced, who pleaded guilty last year in a federal public corruption case, multiple sources told CBS News on Friday.

Her two co-defendants, the billionaire Venezuelan-Italian banker and Britannia Financial Group founder Julio Martin Herrera-Velutini and Mark Rossini, will also be pardoned for their crimes in the bribery scheme, two of the sources said….”
 
nycfan said:

Trump pardoning Puerto Rico's former governor Wanda Vázquez, sources say​


www.cbsnews.com

Trump pardoning Puerto Rico's former governor Wanda Vázquez, sources say

Puerto Rico's former governor Wanda Vázquez was previously indicted in a federal corruption case.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com

“President Trump plans to pardon Puerto Rico's former governor, Wanda Vázquez Garced, who pleaded guilty last year in a federal public corruption case, multiple sources told CBS News on Friday.

Her two co-defendants, the billionaire Venezuelan-Italian banker and Britannia Financial Group founder Julio Martin Herrera-Velutini and Mark Rossini, will also be pardoned for their crimes in the bribery scheme, two of the sources said….”
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“… All three defendants pleaded guilty to lesser corruption charges in August, after the Justice Department abruptly cut a deal with the defendants as the case was nearing trial.

Among the defense attorneys who helped broker the deal with Mr. Trump's Justice Department was Chris Kise, who previously defended the president over criminal charges that he retained classified information after departing the White House in early 2021.

… It was one of corruption cases in which defense lawyers in the last year have sought to have dismissed, claiming without evidence they were examples of weaponization by the Biden administration, the sources previously said.

Trump officials have said they believed the case was politically motivated, noting the investigation into Vázquez started in 2020, days after she had endorsed Mr. Trump….”
 
nycfan said:
“… All three defendants pleaded guilty to lesser corruption charges in August, after the Justice Department abruptly cut a deal with the defendants as the case was nearing trial.

Among the defense attorneys who helped broker the deal with Mr. Trump's Justice Department was Chris Kise, who previously defended the president over criminal charges that he retained classified information after departing the White House in early 2021.

… It was one of corruption cases in which defense lawyers in the last year have sought to have dismissed, claiming without evidence they were examples of weaponization by the Biden administration, the sources previously said.

Trump officials have said they believed the case was politically motivated, noting the investigation into Vázquez started in 2020, days after she had endorsed Mr. Trump….”
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“… In July, the federal judge presiding over the case expressed dismay after the Justice Department said it wanted to dismiss the most serious offenses and allow the defendants to plead to lesser misdemeanor charges of violating the Federal Electoral Campaign Act.

"Strikingly, the penalty for violating Section 30121 of the FECA is a mere slap on the wrist when compared to the sentencing exposure the defendants faced if convicted of the conduct charged in the Indictment," wrote U.S. District Judge Silvia Carreño-Coll for the District of Puerto Rico….”

"But alas, the Government's decision to shift gears at the eleventh hour is allowed because ultimately the Government decides how it will exercise its prosecutorial discretion," she added.
 
The article notes that Trump dismantled the public corruption group at DOJ last year (it was established after Watergate) and has undone most of its most recent convictions, indictments and investigations with pardons and dropped prosecutions.
 
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