Archive for the 'Celebrity Arrests' Category

Tom DeLay, former U.S. House of Representatives majority leader, is a current competitor on the hit television series “Dancing with the Stars,” and according to an Associated Press report, DeLay is also dealing with criminal charges of money laundering and conspiracy.

The charges were originally brought against DeLay four years ago, based on state legislative elections from 2002 - and the case is now waiting to be determined by appeals courts in Texas. The case may never even go to trial, the Associated Press reported.

While the pending charges are somewhat of a nuisance for the former politician, he’s nothing but smiles when it comes to “Dancing with the Stars.”

According to the Associated Press, DeLay has a great time on stage, and even takes time to give extra attention to the judges.

Prosecutors in DeLay’s criminal case have allegedly not paid much attention to the TV show, and have said they don’t see that it would affect the case in any way.

The well-known movie director, Roman Polanski, was recently arrested in Zurich, Switzerland by Swiss authorities because of a sex crime he committed in the United States in 1977.

In 1978, Polanski fled the U.S. to avoid sentencing for the charges against him - he allegedly had sex with a 13-year-old girl.

According to a New York Times report, supporters of the director are asking the question, “Why now?” After all, this crime was committed in a different country more than 30 years ago.

The Los Angeles district attorney’s office says the arrest was simply a matter of opportunity - Polanski was in a place at a time when the authorities “knew he would be available.”

Many people wonder why the arrest wasn’t made in the past, because authorities have apparently had the opportunity before, the New York Times reported.

Polanski has openly traveled around the world in the last 30 years - but has avoided visits to countries like Britain where extradition might be easier for Los Angeles authorities to achieve.

According to the New York Times, the victim of Polanski’s crime has publicly forgiven him.

Polanski, now 76, has appealed to Swiss authorities for his release, and a decision should be reached in the coming weeks. His defense lawyers have not made any official decisions regarding the case.

Many members of the film-directing world are very upset by the decision of American and Swiss authorities to arrest the Oscar-winning director.

Sunday morning in Buffalo must have been quite an experience for cab driver Jan Radecki, who unknowingly picked up Chicago Blackhawk Patrick Kane and cousin James Kane in his cab, and drove them from the ‘nightlife’ area to a residential street a few miles away.

Around 5:00 a.m. Patrick and James Kane were arrested for second-degree robbery, a Class C felony, fourth-degree criminal mischief and theft of services - both Class A misdemeanors.

The cab fare the Kanes owed Radecki totaled $13.80, and they gave him $15. He gave them $1 change, but didn’t have 20 cents - so they allegedly beat him up, saying, “You don’t know who you’re (bleeping) with!”

According to a Chicago Tribune article, Radecki’s lawyer says the incident has been blown out of proportion, and he’s sure they’ll be able to work something out with the Kanes and their defense attorney.

A formers police officer in Zanesville, Ohio, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in a drug conspiracy that allegedly involved stealing drugs from criminal dealers and reselling them for profit, according to WBNS.

Sean Beck was the third officer to be sentenced in the drug distribution plot. The officers allegedly faked drug raids to obtain cocaine and other drugs.

The FBI learned about the operation when a drug dealer who had been contacted to act as a middle man informed on the officers, and set up a sting operation in an Ohio cemetery.

Beck’s co-conspirators, officers Trevor Fusner and Chad Mills, plead guilty in 2007 at the beginning of the investigation, and were sentenced to 80 months in prison each. Beck pleaded guilty in May, 2008 to felony drug and firearms charges.

Texas billionaire R. Allen Stanford, awaiting his trial for fraud charges, has filed a request to be transferred from the Joe Corley Detention Facility, citing its “oppressive” conditions.

According to the motion filed by Stanford’s defense attorney, Stanford says the facility has no air conditioning, is often without power, and that he shares a windowless cell with up to 10 other inmates, according to a KHOU news story.

Stanford is requesting to be transferred to the Federal Detention Center in downtown Houston, in order to have better access to his defense attorney in preparation for his trial. Corley Detention Facility, located in Conroe, Texas, about 40 miles north of Houston, does not allow visitors to use electronic devices, which his lawyer needs to share evidence.

Stanford was arrested June 18 on multiple fraud counts stemming from his Stanford Financial Group. Federal authorities allege that Stanford defrauded investors of up to $8 billion by inflating the profits of the company.

Upon his arrest, Stanford, who has dual citizenship in the U.S. and Antigua and Barbuda — where he is a Knight Commander — was forced to submit his passport, KHOU reported.

He was originally granted a $500,000 bond, District Judge David Hittner later revoked it, calling Stanford a serious flight risk. This decision is currently being appealed.

Stanford drew the suspicion of the FBI, SEC, and other financial regulatory groups in late 2008, when a letter to investors quoted a loss of just 1.3% — at a time similar institutions were seeing losses of 50% or more.

One former partner alleged Stanford presented purely hypothetical gains as real data to investors, in order to increase investor contributions, according to Bloomberg news.

Stanford has retained defense attorney Dick DeGuerin, famous for defending Oliver North in the criminal case following the Iran-Contra scandal.

Police investigating the death of Michael Jackson say it could be a criminal case, depending on the results of Jackson’s toxicology report, according to CNN.

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton told reporters that the coroner’s report will determine whether Jackson’s death is ruled a homicide or an accidental overdose.

Meanwhile, new details have emerged about Jackson’s prescription drug use. CNN cites a confidential source alleging that Jackson received Xanax prescriptions from doctors in different states, and even had employees receive prescriptions in their name, then pass on the pills to him — all forms of prescription fraud.

The pill use details, from a 2004 document, allege that Jackson had a sleep disorder, and took up to 10 Xanax a night.

The document contains the names of five doctors — some practicing in California, with others in New York and Florida.

Chief Bratton did not say who a potential criminal investigation would target.

As the world continues to grapple with the death of Michael Jackson, questions to the legitimacy of the allegations against Michael Jackson arose throughout the proceedings and remained relevant up to—and may remain well after—his recent death.

The most common and unanswered question is, if the allegations were true, why did only one of the alleged victims testify?

The judge presiding over the 2005 case, Judge Rodney Melville, said he would allow prosecutors to present to the jury testimony concerning the five boys whom they allege Jackson molested when the boys were between the ages of 10 and 13.

However, of the alleged victims, only one testified.

The remainder of those who testified for the prosecution were individuals who avowed they observed the molestation.

If these alleged victims were still minors at the time of the trial, then there is obvious reasoning for the avoidance of any public trial, which would conjure up latent emotions or memories. But this was not necessarily the case.

In point of fact, some—such as actor Macaulay Caulkin—were in their mid-twenties at the time of the trial. Underscoring this point is the fact that Caulkin testified for the defense that he was never molested.

The Extent of the Jackson Case

The 2005 trial of Michael Jackson began as a trial of Did Michael Jackson molest the sole accuser? but became more of a case of Is Michael Jackson a child molester?

Speculators to this paradigm shift comment that this was a sly maneuver by the prosecution in the case to evade the more arduous burden of proof ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ needed for a just and constitutional trial.

Moreover, none of the other allegations ever led to a criminal trial—let alone a criminal conviction—for Jackson.

The most apparent and protruding irony in this case is the claim by prosecutors that Jackson was so covert in his alleged acts that he actually had a bell in his bedroom to make sure no one entering the room would happen upon an alleged act of molestation.

They also make claims that his molestation was so blatant that eight people ‘witnessed’ these events, and they left such a strong impression on them that they could remember the details a decade or more later at the time of the trial.

The basic tenants of logic should prove these two allegations erroneous and mutually exclusive.

The jury in the case, for its part, should be commended for upholding Jackson’s trial rights and judging only the evidence in the case, and not allowing hearsay and speculation to be enough for a conviction.

Because the waters of the Michael Jackson case were so murky, we may never know the truth. Even in hindsight, all that can be ascertained is a timeline of events, which seem to provide the summary for this period in the King of Pop’s life.

Michael Jackson’s Criminal Defense Timeline

12/04: Michael Jackson voluntarily submits a DNA sample to authorities.

01/05: Jackson is charged by a Santa Barbara County grand jury, and pleads innocent to, molesting a 13-year old boy, conspiring to commit extortion, false imprisonment, and child abduction.

2/24/05: After a brief delay, jury is selected: eight women, four men, ranging in age from 20 to 79. It is widely reported, the racial/ethnic diversity is seven whites, four Hispanics and one Asian. The jurors occupations range from head cashier, army widow, computer programmer, civil engineer, and a horse trainer.

4/25/05: Michael Jackson’s former wife, Debbie Rowe, is set to be testified against him. She is expected to speak about being pressured into giving a scripted videotaped interview. Doing so, she is alleged promised she would then have visits with her two children.

4/27/05: Debbie Rowe testified at the Michael Jackson trial.

4/28/05: Debbie Rowe defended Michael Jackson as a “good father” who was “great with kids.” She also described him as a victim of aides who were “vultures” who exploited Michael.

6/13/05: After a four-month trial, and about 30 hours of deliberations over a seven day period, jurors acquitted Michael Jackson of all charges.

Ponzi mastermind Bernie Madoff’s day of
reckoning has come. A federal judge sentenced Madoff to 150 years, the maximum sought by the prosecution, according to CNN.

Following the sentence, Madoff offered an apology to his victims.

I live in a tormented state for all the pain and suffering I created, Madoff said. “I left a legacy of shame. It is something I will live with for the rest of my life.

Madoff orchestrated a massive securities fraud that swindled investors out of billions of dollars. Much of that money is still unaccounted for, and Madoff is expected to be forced to pay back his victims.

Madoff’s defense attorney had asked the judge for a 12 year sentence, arguing that at age 71, his client’s life expectancy would make even that sentence a life sentence.

The Securities and Exchange Commission unveiled conspiracy charges against brokerage firm Cohmad Securities and four individuals with securities fraud in association with Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, the Washington Post reports.

Cohmad is being charged as providing “feeder funds” into Madoff’s decades-long scam that defrauded thousands of investors out of billions of dollars.

Madoff, who faces sentencing today in a Manhattan court, claims to have acted alone. However, authorities doubt that claim, and are attempting to file charges against all members of the monumental conspiracy.

Madoff, who pleaded guilty to 11 charges on March 12, could face 150 years in prison for his role in the securities fraud, and may have to pay back as much as $171 billion, according to CNN.

Madoff’s defense attorney has asked the judge for a 12 year sentence.

When Michael Jackson died unexpectedly June 25, there were two points that summed up his obituary: He was a million-selling mega-superstar, and his personal life was sketchy at best.

Jackson’s alleged criminal history found him under investigation for child abuse twice. A 1993 case was dropped without formal charges being filed, while a 2005 case resulted in Jackson being acquitted of all charges.

1993 Case

In 1993, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s office began its investigation of Jackson following allegations of sexual abuse by Evan Chandler, the father of Jordan Chandler, a 13-year-old boy who Jackson had befriended.

Prior to the allegations, Jackson was rumored to be living with the Chandler family, and was close friends with Jordan, a fan he had met in 1992.

The District Attorney’s office searched Jackson’s Neverland Ranch, and the Jackson family’s home, but was unable to turn up incriminating evidence.

Famously, the District Attorney’s office examined Jackson in the nude, following testimony from Jordan Chandler about the appearance of his genitalia. While the description was allegedly similar, it was not close enough to be used as evidence.

Two days after the investigation, Jackson issued a statement by satellite from his Neverland Ranch, describing his disgust at the proceedings and the mass media, and affirming his innocence.

After having developed a drug addiction from the stress of the proceedings, and weary of the media, Jackson eventually settled out of court with the Chandler family. Unable to secure Jordan Chandler’s testimony, the prosecution ceased its investigation without formally issuing any charges.

Bashir Documentary

The majority of Michael’s fans, and America at large, believed Jackson’s claims of innocence. However, his reputation was tarnished.

In 2002, British journalist Martin Bashir began filming a documentary, Living with Michael Jackson, that interviewed and followed Jackson around over a period of 8 months, from May 2002 to January 2003.

Airing in February 2003, the documentary immediately drew speculation and re-fanned the flames surrounding Jackson’s relationship with children.

In particular, Michael was accompanied by a 13-year-old boy, Gavin Arvizo, throughout most of the film, and Jackson spoke about sharing his bed with Arvizo and other boys.

People vs. Jackson

Following the broadcast, Santa Barbara District Attorney Thomas Sneddon, the same man who investigated Jackson 10 years earlier, indicted Jackson and his aides on charges of conspiracy to commit child abduction, false imprisonment, and extortion.

In June, 2003, the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department began its investigation of Jackson. In November, more than 70 members of the DA’s office and Sheriff’s department arrived at Neverland Ranch with a search warrant — the largest “raid” in American history that wasn’t for a murderer of serial killer.

On November 20, Jackson flew from Las Vegas, where he was performing, to Santa Barbara for a voluntary arrest.

In a following press conference, Sneddon was quoted as saying “We got him. We finally got him,” despite the fact that the investigation had only just begun, leading many the believe Sneddon had a vendetta against Jackson.

In 2004, Jackson was arraigned, and pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges against him (after which he hopped onto his car and began dancing for his fans). A grand jury unveiled the charges against Jackson and five co-conspirators, setting the stage for his jury trial.

Jury Trial

Jackson’s jury trial began on February 28, 2005.

The judge allowed the prosecution to present evidence that Jackson had a habitual criminal mindset, with evidence from the 1993 investigation being submitted in addition to evidence from the current proceedings.

Both the prosecution and the criminal defense called a wide range of witnesses: five men who alleged that Jackson had abused them as boys testified for the prosecution; Jay Leno and Macaulay Caulkin, among others, testified for the defense.

Finally, after all the evidence was considered, the jury returned its verdict on June 13, 2005: not guilty on all 10 counts.

The investigation and trial lasted for 574 days.

Once again, although Jackson was never convicted of any crimes, the view of Jackson as an alleged criminal was one that could not be eliminated. In the years before his death, Jackson became increasingly reclusive, even moving to Bahrain. Jackson returned to the spotlight while planning a massive farewell tour before his death from cardiac arrest at age 50.

Read more about Jackson’s civil lawsuits.