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Tampa Federal Defense Attorney

Tampa Mortgage Fraud - Federal Prison

Tampa Federal Criminal Defense Expert notes that the former president of a mortgage company was sentenced to five years and three months and an officer was sentenced to three years and four months in federal prison for their roles in a $79 million Mortgage Fraud Ponzi Scheme. . In addition to restitution, they signed a forfeiture of assets agreement for another $79 million.

A lawyer may be the feds next target. Both defendants had their sentences reduced for the cooperation they have given the government. One defendant allowed federal agents to record telephone calls. The other defendant "wore a wire during a meeting with a Philadelphia lawyer so investigators could gather information about the lawyer being an accessory after the fact" according to published reports in the Tampa Tribune.

The banks lost $68.5 million and the government lost about $9.5 million between 1999 and 2001. United States District Judge, James Whittemore called the crime "a fraud of mammoth proportions."

Source: October 26, 2009 Tampa Tribune

Mortgage Fraud Questions? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290

Florida Mortgage Fraud Defense Attorney, Florida Mortgage Fraud, Mortgage Fraud, Tampa Defense Attorney

Federal Defense Attorney on Search and Seizure of Electronic Devices

Tampa Federal Criminal Defense Attorney has reviewed Government policies on Search and Seizure of Electronic Devices at borders. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) policy is to treat computers, laptops, and other electronic devices like suitcases and backpacks in terms of border searches. It appears under current DHS policy, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents believe they are not required to provide justification or a reason for these electronic searches.

In a response to a recent Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, CBP disclosed the following: Electronic devices that were searched included laptops, USB thumb drives, hard drives, cell phones, digital cameras, and even DVD disks . From October 2008 through June 2009, CBP officials searched over 1,500 electronic devices belonging to travelers.

Cell phones were the most often searched and seized devices between October 2008 and June 2009. From July 2008 to June 2009, and Border Protection (CBP) transferred electronic files found on travelers’ devices to third-party agencies almost 300 times. More than 80 percent of the transfers involved the CBP making copies of travelers’ files. Over half the time, these unknown agencies asserted independent bases for retaining or seizing the transferred files.

As a defense attorney, it appears that the best strategy when traveling is to leave electronic devices at home.

Border Search? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290. Sources: http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=219500468 http://www.nefafoundation.org/miscellaneous/FeaturedDocs/DHS_ForeignTravelThreatAssessment.pdf http://www.aclu.org/print/national-security/customs-and-border-protection-cbp-first-production-documents Federal Defense Attorney on Search and Seizure of Electronic Devices

Florida Record Sealing Expunging

Florida Record Sealing Expunging requests have increased 43 percent in Florida. The Wall Street Journal reports that efforts to seal criminal records have skyrocketed as job hunters seek to keep problems in the past. The news report states "Florida sealed and expunged nearly 15,000 criminal records in the fiscal year ended June 30, up 43% from the previous year. " One employer stated, "If I have a guy with four arrests and bad credit versus someone who has never been in trouble in his life, who am I going to hire? It's not rocket science," says [a] corporate director of safety, security and investigations at a Florida employer which has 175 stores.

Source: Wall Street Journal Nov. 13, 2009

Florida Record Sealing Expunging? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290

Florida Record Sealing Expunging

Case Results

This website reports news and case law from both reported cases and news media. As of January 1, 2010, The Florida Bar prohibits the reporting of case results obtained by Florida Lawyers in their own cases. The Florida Bar in many instances also prohibits the use of testimonials. The reported position of Florida Supreme Court can be found here. . In short, The Florida Bar and the Florida Supreme Court have ruled: No testimonials; No characterization of services; No past results. The complete opinion of the Florida Supreme Court is located here. The cases reported here are not past results obtained in Mr. W.F. ''Casey'' Ebsary's cases.

Feel free to discuss the facts of your case with Casey to find out how the law may apply to the facts of your case .

Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney on Caller ID Spoofing

Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney notes that individuals including law enforcement  are purchasing ''spoofcards'' from the website www.spoofcard.com, and using them to engage in  or investigate criminal activity. A ''spoofcard'' allows you to call any number, and alter either the Caller ID, and/or your voice. This service is free initially, but a ''spoofcard'' costs only $4.95, and allows you to get up to 25 credits or calls at this amount. Cops are also using "spoofcards" from confiscated phones in drug busts to make dealers believe clients are calling when it's actually the cops.

In other cases, a person could call law enforcement and allege that a client has violated an Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence or their bond by calling them. They could then show the Deputy their phone, and there would be a Caller ID number to verify this fact. The Deputy would then call the number to verify that it belonged to the person enjoined from calling, and (you guessed it) the innocent spouse would answer the phone and deny the call was placed by them. The Deputy prepares a warrant, and the alleged caller goes to jail. The person could even go one step further and play the Deputy a message from the enjoined person, when in actuality it is the complainant (or another) disguising their voice and/or calling themselves through the spoofcard website. Alternatively, a person holding an injunction could be consistently called and stalked by the person enjoined with the use of a “spoofcard” to mask their phone number and disguise their voice.

One Escambia County, Florida  lawyer reports a case, where the husband used a "spoofcard" to call her client, and get her repeatedly arrested for violating a temporary injunction. The attorney finally got a witness who saw the Husband using this site on the internet. The defense attorney was able to subpoena the witness, and got her client out of jail on an emergency motion for bond. The Defense Attorney used the "spoofcard" in court and made it look like the clerk had just called her from the court's phone. When the attorney called back the number, and the clerk picked up, and the trial Judge was floored and intends on sharing this information with all the judges at their next meeting.

This information could really help with a defense in some cases. Feel free to pass it on if you think others could benefit from it.

Caller ID Spoofing an Issue? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290 .

Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Florida

Honest Services Fraud - Florida - Middle District

Breaking news from Federal Defender - Title 18, U.S.C. § 1346 defines a scheme or artifice to defraud for purposes of chapter 63 (i.e., § 1341 (mail fraud), § 1342 (fictitious name or address), § 1343 (wire fraud), § 1344 (bank fraud) and others) as including a scheme or artifice to deprive another of the intangible right of honest services. The Supreme Court has granted certiorari in three cases on the issue of honest services. Some people think that the Supreme Court might find part of the statute defining honest services unconstitutional. If that happens, the above statutes might fall in part or in full. Just be aware when you are dealing with these statutes.

Honest Services Allegations in Federal Court? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290 .

Florida Middle District Federal Criminal Defense Attorney

Junk Science and Federal Criminal Defense

Florida Federal Criminal Defense Attorney, W.F. ''Casey'' Ebsary, Jr. just returned from a great seminar on fighting the admissibility of Junk Science in federal criminal cases.

To attack Junk Scientific Evidence, one must look beyond the practitioners of the field itself. State of Maryland v. Bryan Rose, K06-0545 (Cir. Balt. Co. 2008) (“general acceptance of latent print identification by its practitioners does not constitute general acceptance by the ‘scientific community’ . . .”); United States v. Saelee, 162 F.Supp.2d 1097 (“Finally, the evidence does indicate that there is general acceptance of the theories and techniques involved in the field of handwriting analysis among the closed universe of forensic document examiners. This proves nothing.”). In most cases, the Government has not and will not be able to produce anyone beyond law enforcement technicians.

The seminar is available for free here: Junk Science in Federal Courts

Thanks to Attorney Frank Godbold.

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Computers Car and Florida Crash Investigations

Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney notes a car's black box may be used in crash investigations. Courts have held that ''the rate of speed of a vehicle can be firmly shown . . . to be so excessive under the circumstances that to travel that fast under the conditions is by itself a reckless disregard for human life or the safety of persons exposed to the speed.'' Court rules that there can be enough probable cause to get a search warrant for the vehicle's black box.

Complete Story and Court Order is here.

Search Warrant for Car Computer? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290

Vehicular Homicide Defense Attorney Lawyer Tampa Florida

White Collar Sentencing in Federal Court

White Collar Sentencing in Federal Court Crackdown noted by Tampa Federal Criminal Defense Attorney, W.F. ''Casey'' Ebsary, Jr. - The Eleventh Circuit Court declared a sentence illegal when a white collar defendant was not sent to prison. The trial court has repeatedly placed the defendant on the federal equivalent of probation. The United States Attorney has repeatedly appealed the below guidelines sentence, and the appeals court has repeatedly reversed.

The court concluded "it is difficult to imagine a would-be white-collar criminal being deterred from stealing millions of dollars from his company by the threat of a purely probationary sentence, regardless of how much probation that person received."

The complete decision is available here:

Opinion of the Appeals Court

White Collar Financial Fraud Defense? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290 .

Note: This office did not represent any parties in this case.

Source: http://www.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/ops/200814712.pdf

White Collar Sentencing in Federal Court

Florida Mortgage Fraud Federal Prosecution - Tampa Federal Defense Attorney

Tampa Federal Criminal Defense Attorney continues a series of reports on Federal Mortgage Fraud Prosecution in the Middle District Court on the West Coast of Florida. The latest numbers confirm our earlier reports. Here are the latest numbers from Lawyers at the Department of Justice.

Case Summaries:

100 defendants
$400 million in loans
700 properties.

Number of Defendants / Prosecutions By Locale:

Ft. Myers - 32;
Tampa - 30;
Orlando - 19;
Jacksonville - 24.

Additional Information from the FBI DOJ website is available here:

http://tampa.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/2009/ta110409.htm

Under Investigation or think you might be? Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290 .

Florida Mortgage Fraud Federal Prosecution - Tampa Federal Defense Attorney

Computers in Criminal Court Seminar

Tampa Federal Criminal Defense Attorney presents an outstanding discussion by experts in the field on Electronic Discovery and Evidence in Criminal Actions. Free download of seminar is here. The materials discussed in the presentation are available here.

Faculty includes a Judge and DOJ Official. Discussion of target letters, subpoenas, and computers. Preservation and destruction of digital evidence issues are addressed.

Acknowledgement: Thanks to Nancy J. Erickson at BNA - legaledge.bna.com .

When Computers Come to Court - Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290 .

Computers in Criminal Court Online Seminar

Federal Sentencing in Computer Related Crimes

Tampa Florida Federal Criminal Defense Attorney, Lawyer W.F. ''Casey'' Ebsary notes that Computer crimes draw stiff sentences in Federal Courts. However, at a United States Sentencing Commission (USSC) hearing in Chicago, a Judge said it would give him comfort in affirming below-guideline sentences in child porn cases to see data showing there are lots of below guidelines sentences. There is such data.

In the first three quarters of 2009, judges sentenced below the guideline range in 503 of 1195 cases (42%) and the government moved for a below-guideline sentence in another 128 cases (10.7%), 101 of which were for reasons other than 5K1.1, that is, for reasons under 3553(a). See USSC Preliminary Data Report, Table 5.

The complete Report is at the link below:

If you have a computer problem in Federal or State Court - Tell Me Your Story Toll Free 1-877-793-9290.

Source: http://www.ussc.gov/sc_cases/USSC_2009_Quarter_Report_3rd.pdf.