Showing posts with label money. Show all posts
Showing posts with label money. Show all posts

Monday, July 19, 2010

More Lawyer Fisticuffs--Ego and Money

The Scranton Pennsylvania Morning Call is reporting on two injury lawyer getting into a punch fest with one another, this is from their report via Above the Law:

An attorney has been charged with assault after authorities say he repeatedly punched his opposing counsel during an argument in a northeastern Pennsylvania courthouse. Police say 46-year-old Michael Rauch threw three roundhouse punches at Scranton attorney John Fisher at the Lackawanna County Courthouse in Scranton [last]  Thursday. The two had been on opposite sides of a civil lawsuit involving a 2003 car crash.

Rauch, of Cherry Hill, N.J., was charged Thursday with simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct. Court papers say Rauch told sheriff's deputies that he had told Fisher to leave him alone but that he continued to harass him.

Rauch spent the morning in a holding cell and later left the courthouse on $10,000 unsecured bail.
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It's always remarkable when legal professionals get into fisticuffs.  It is always about "respect," someone feels "disrespected," which means it's always about ego.  Since lawyers losing it is always about ego, the throwing of a punch usually works it way back around to being about money.  Ego and money, its always about ego and money. 

Years ago, a sleazy lawyer I worked for was testifying in a divorce (who knows why, let's just say:  it was another era) when an even sleazier lawyer attacked him using his cane swinging wildly and ineffectively. 

In that day and age a lot of strange stuff went unpunsihed and a mere admonishment put an end to the attempted courtroom violence. Now bear with me, the assailant who I'll call Milt Showroon, was merely a part time lawyer; he was also a slum landlord, and a ghetto furniture store owner/operator.  No doubt Milt was brilliant. Both of Milt's sons were both Harvard Law school graduates and became in their own right prominent OurTown practitioners they were from a different era and educational background from their father.  Milt himself had only a passing acquaintance with the law, ethics and professional responsibility.  His career ended a few years after the incident I described after being arrested and prosecuted for discharging a revolver in an ill-advised effort to intimidate a tenant to collect late rents. 

As you no doubt realize if you are a regular reader of Bad Lawyer, Milt Showroom needed the nickles he was trying to collect that afternoon from his ghetto-tenant, when he pulled the six shooter, like the Ocean needs a few more drops of water, or crude.

Friday, June 25, 2010

Shiloh Pastor Pleads to Theft of $1.2 Million From HUD Earmarks


The Lousiville Courier-Journal reports that long time Shiloh Baptist Church (pic),  Pastor, Rev. Henry M. Humphrey, 72, entered guilty pleas to 11 counts in an indictment against him, including conspiracy to defraud the government, soliciting kickbacks of federal funds, submitting false reports to HUD, wire fraud and conspiracy to launder money to the tune of $1.2 million dollars. 

This story moves me because the pastor involved was a long time preacher in Louisville and his father was a preacher before him.  I can't help thinking about Sholom Rubashkin, and, yes, myself.  How do we let money and our inability to put money in the proper place control and damage our lives?  In these cases, the lives and careers disgraced by manipulation related to money are for the most part lives and careers devoted to others.  I am sad.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Honesty, Soul Level, Cellular Honesty!

The London TimesOnline reports the story of  British golfer Brian Davis who--in the middle of a PGA sudden death playoff--perceived that he had "illegally" brushed a reed with the head of his club.  No one else saw this "foul" nonetheless Davis approached an official and a video review by the referee confirmed the impression that he had "fouled," thereby costing Davis the tournament and a chance at a cool million dollar prize. 

I love this story!  This is from the TimesOnline account:

"For his part, Davis felt he had no choice but to call the foul on himself. ' It was one of those things,' he said. 'I thought I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I thought we’d check on TV, and indeed there was movement. I want to win a PGA Tour event more than just about anything but I play by the rules and no victory would be worthwhile if it had a cloud hanging over it. I saw the grass move, called  [the referee] over and that’s it, end of story.'"

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Now Kill a Man with Your Flying Maserati, That'll Be Probation

On the heels of the sentencing of former emergency room physcian Dr. Christopher Thompson to 5 years for assault on cyclists with his Infiniti sedan, in L.A., I'm stunned to read the story of the flying Maserati killer who got probation. 



That's right, according to the Columbia (SC) Post and Courier, John Ludwig, a wealthy South Carolinian businessman will do no time for killing Frederic Bardsley, this is from the Associated Press account:

 "A South Carolina businessman who pleaded guilty to plowing his speeding Maserati through a house, killing a 62-year-old man inside, will not serve time in prison for his crime, a judge ruled Friday.  Circuit Judge James Williams Jr. affirmed his previous sentence of three years probation for John Ludwig, 37, in the death of Frederic Bardsley.  Bardsley was killed April 25 after Ludwig's Maserati hurtled through a field at speeds of at least 85 mph, launched off an embankment and plowed into the back of Bardsley's Greenville home. Ludwig, whose attorneys say he lost control after swerving to miss several deer, suffered minor injuries in the crash. Bardsley's wife was also home but was not injured.  Ludwig, a former college football standout, was originally charged with murder but pleaded guilty in November to reckless homicide. Williams sentenced Ludwig to serve three years probation and do 500 hours of community service, saying he was impressed by the multimillionaire's charitable works.  'He's admitted his guilt,' [Judge]Williams said. 'It's evident to me that he has been very unselfish.' 

The prosecution was recommending 10 years.  Ludwig walked.


Apparently, Ludwig is somewhat out-of-control, Ludwig avoided jail time for a  prior incident involving an assault on a man Ludwig accused of having an affair with his wife. 

Seems Mr. Ludwig is able to spread a lot of money around, very quickly to make his troubles go away, for instance, noen of the Bardsley family was present at the hearing held by Judge Williams to reconsider the sentencing in light of the outcry by the prosecution--why, wll they were paid $3 million dollars to settle the wrongful death claim.

Look, I'm not saying Judge Williams is corrupt, in fact what I'm able to ascertain from public sources, this is a distinquished jurist;  but, the Judge should not be surprised to find law enforcement scrutinizing his bank deposits, and the bank deposits of family and friends for some time. 

Barry Scheck said something on Talk of the Nation the other day relating to the power of rich white men to positively effect outcomes for themselves under our system that seems to be corroborated by this example.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

What a Dick!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lawrence-lessig/plain-sight-corruption-se_b_346277.html

Great piece of bloggery by Lawrence Lessig re: the vote of of Sen. Richard Burr against Sen. Al Franken's amendment to do away with mandatory arbitration clauses in defense contracts that prevented Jamie Leigh Jones from suing her employer and the co-workers who gang raped her!



Now why did this republican Senator from North Carolina vote against the Franken amendment?  


MONEY?  Lots of money.  This genius took $700,000 from defense contractors and the Chamber of Commerce who actively opposed the amendment.  


Isn't life grand?  


This is the link to my earlier post of Franken's examination of witnesses including Miss Jones:  http://badlawyernyc.blogspot.com/2009/10/al-franken-gets-to-heart-of-it.html

Lessig' blog post at Huffington Post has links to petitions, etc. designed to publically embarass Burr--like anything is beneath this creep.