LEGAL NEWSLINE

CHARLESTON — West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is co-leading a six-state group suing the federal Department of Education over what they call its “dangerous overhaul” of Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act.

Changpeng Zhao, commonly known as CZ, the co-founder and former CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Binance, expressed regret over his failure to implement sufficient anti-money laundering controls during the early stages of Binance. He is currently facing a criminal charge for this oversight. CZ shared these sentiments in a court document filed on April 23, ahead of his sentencing scheduled for April 30.

A total of 161 individuals submitted letters of support for Changpeng Zhao, the co-founder and former CEO of Binance, in anticipation of his April 30 sentencing for violating the Bank Secrecy Act. These letters were included in an April 23 filing in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

A former Oregon Department of Human Services caregiver, Zakary Glover, 30, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison and five years of supervised release for sexually assaulting a woman with developmental disabilities who was under his care.Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division condemned Glover's actions, stating, “This defendant engaged in deplorable acts of sexual misconduct and targeted a victim with severe developmental disabilities who was entrusted to his care and could not defend herself."U.S. Attorney Natalie...

The Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) is currently looking into an officer-involved shooting that took place in the Town of Grand Chute, Wis. on the evening of Friday, April 12, 2024.According to the report, Outagamie County Sheriff’s Sergeant Ellis Brooks discharged his firearm, striking William Jae Kil Nelson, 22, who was observed with a knife at the scene. The incident unfolded after deputies responded to a vehicle crash on W. Prospect Avenue in the Town of Grand Chute. Outagamie County Sheriff’s Deputy Noah Yeck attempted...

The Justice Department has reached a settlement agreement with Sunrise Senior Living Management Inc., the operator of Sunrise at Fox Hill in Bethesda, Maryland, to address allegations of employment discrimination. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke emphasized the department's commitment to upholding the law regarding discrimination based on citizenship, immigration status, or national origin, stating, "The Justice Department will continue to hold employers accountable for unlawfully discriminating against workers because of citizenship, immigration status or national...

A California businessman from Beverly Hills, Haim Jerry Kohen, has pleaded guilty to evading over $1 million in federal and state taxes. Kohen, who owned a business dealing in used clothing, admitted to underreporting or not reporting income on his tax returns for more than a decade. His evasion tactics included diverting cash payments from customers and not reporting rental income from properties he owned.According to court documents, Kohen diverted cash payments received from a significant customer, keeping the money for himself instead of depositing it into his...

An indictment was unsealed yesterday charging Roger Ver, an early investor in bitcoins, with mail fraud, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns. Ver, formerly of Santa Clara, California, owned MemoryDealers.com Inc. and Agilestar.com Inc., two companies that sold computer and networking equipment. He also avidly promoted bitcoins, earning him the moniker "Bitcoin Jesus."Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada for the Central District of California announced the charges. The...

Attorney General Ashley Moody has taken action to address the rising issue of jury duty scams in Florida. In response to reports of scams targeting Floridians, Moody has released a new resource called Scams at a Glance: Sham or Summons. The resource aims to educate individuals on how to recognize and avoid falling victim to these fraudulent schemes.In a statement, Attorney General Ashley Moody expressed concern over the increase in jury duty scams, stating, “There has been a recent uptick in reports of jury duty scams, and I have heard personally from many Floridians who...

Attorney General Jason Miyares has taken a firm stance against the recent actions of the Department of Education, joining a six-state coalition to challenge the overhaul of Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act. Miyares expressed his concerns stating, “The Biden Administration's unlawful rule would jeopardize half a century of landmark protections for women, forcing the Administration’s social agenda onto the states by holding federal funding hostage."Miyares emphasized, "We cannot roll back Title IX in the name of false equity." Title IX has been instrumental in...

PHILADELPHIA (Legal Newsline) - A Pennsylvania tree service company with a history of using noncompete agreements for its employees is suing the Federal Trade Commission over its new rule banning them.

ALBANY, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) - A Lebanese bank that paid $580 million for the assets of Lebanese Canadian Bank also bought New York jurisdiction over lawsuits claiming LCB financed terrorism, the state’s highest court ruled.

CARSON CITY, Nev. (Legal Newsline) - A Nevada statute banning the sale of unfinished gun parts that can be assembled into untraceable “ghost guns” is constitutional, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled, even as the U.S. Supreme Court considers a similar ban at the federal level.

TAMPA, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - A Florida urology practice faces litigation claiming one of its employees dropped a patient while trying to return him to his wheelchair and broke his hip.

Former Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) attorney Mark Black, 50, of Arlington, Virginia, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for his involvement in sexually exploiting numerous children. According to court documents, Black was part of online groups dedicated to persuading prepubescent girls to engage in sexually explicit conduct. Black and his co-conspirators recorded these acts and shared the videos among themselves. In one instance, Black induced a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct on a live-streaming application while another minor was...

BOSTON (Legal Newsline) - A woman who claimed her Uber driver sexually assaulted her has sued the ride-sharing company in Massachusetts state court.

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force is providing resources for online safety as sextortion cases increase throughout the country, including in Wisconsin. Attorney General Josh Kaul emphasized the importance of protecting children online, stating, "We must keep our kids safe from online dangers."In a recent sextortion case investigated by the Wisconsin DOJ Division of Criminal Investigation, a La Crosse man was sentenced to 18 years in prison. Kaul reaffirmed the department's dedication, saying, "The...

Three members of the Hoover Criminal Gang have been convicted for their roles in the murder of a suspected rival gang member, announced federal authorities. Markell Young, Octavius Ferguson, and Jordan Powell, all from Gibson County, Tennessee, were found guilty by a federal jury in connection to the violent crime.The murder took place on Jan. 31, 2017, in Humboldt, Tennessee, when the defendants targeted a suspected member of the rival Gangster Disciples gang. Young ordered Ferguson, Powell, and two other co-defendants to carry out the murder by indiscriminately shooting...

Former defense contractor John Murray Rowe Jr. has pleaded guilty to charges of attempted espionage, admitting to attempting to deliver national defense information to a foreign government. According to court documents, Rowe, who held various national security clearances and worked on sensitive defense projects, disclosed classified information to an undercover FBI agent posing as a Russian government agent.During a meeting with the undercover agent, Rowe revealed specific operating details of electronic countermeasure systems used by U.S. military fighter jets. In...

A California man, Shane Brightpath Mike, has pleaded guilty to failing to pay over employment taxes withheld from the wages of his company’s employees. Mike, who owned and was the president and chief operating officer of Excel Behavioral Services Inc., a business in Campbell, California, provided home care to persons with disabilities.According to court documents and statements made in court, Mike failed to pay over $1 million in withheld taxes to the IRS for the fourth quarter of 2014 through the third quarter of 2015. It was revealed that Mike also used Excel’s funds to...