Florida’s former Republican chairman is now the target of a criminal investigation by Florida State law enforcement, as is a company he reportedly hired to raise donations.

Jim Greer, who resigned in January from his position of state GOP chairman under pressure from accusations that he misspent party money, is the investigation’s target, according to the Washington Post.

While the Florida Department of Law Enforcement has not officially named Greer as the main target, a political source confirmed that he was the focus. The department did say that it was investigating “possible criminal activity surrounding a former senior official of the Republican Party of Florida and Victory Strategies, LLC,” according to the Post.

The Orlando Sentinel newspaper reported earlier that Greer was the majority owner of Victory Strategies, and that the company had brokered a contract that paid commissions on money raised for the Republican Party.

Greer has denied misspending any money belonging to the party, and was not reached for a recent comment about the state’s investigation.

Around when he resigned, Greer said he was falsely accused by members within the party that were looking to create a more conservative base among the state politicians.

The investigation notice comes on the heels of another spending issue with the Republican National Committee. The RNC is now being scrutinized after it was revealed that thousands were spent at luxury hotels, and close $2,000 was spent for meals at a Hollywood area nightclub, where apparently topless dancers and a bondage theme were part of the evening’s entertainment.

Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum, also a Republican, said that he learned around mid-March from the current state party chairman John Thrasher that details within the party’s financial audit may lead in a similar direction to the investigation.

“This information indicates there may have been criminal activity surrounding a former senior official of the Republican Party of Florida and a company called Victory Strategies, LLC,” McCollum said. “Upon learning this very serious and concerning information, I immediately referred the matter to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.”

Thrasher, McCollum and representatives of the Florida State Law Enforcement Department all declined to offer any further comment about the criminal investigation.

Florida Democrats are now urging the state’s governor Charlie Crist, also a Republican, to bring in a special prosecutor to investigate both the fund raising contract and the accusations of improper spending.

Florida Democratic Party Chairman Karen Thurman said only a special prosecutor can legitimately determine what happened.

A Santa Monica restaurant allegedly decided to serve meat from an endangered whale to their patrons

Criminal charges were filed this week against The Hump restaurant and one of its chefs for allegedly selling meat to customers that came from an endangered whale. The restaurant immediately released a statement through their attorney Gary Lincenberg admitting to wrongdoing and that they are willing to cooperate with court system, according to the L.A. Times.

Lincenberg said the Hump took “responsibility for the wrongdoing charged by the U.S. attorney.” The misdemeanor charge of illegal sale of a marine mammal product could be punished by up to a year in prison, as well as a $100,000 fine against an individual and a $200,000 fine against an organization, The L.A. Times reported

The restaurant was exposed through an unlikely team effort between a documentary producer, two vegans and federal agents.

Charles Hambleton, associated producer of the Oscar-winning documentary about water body abuses in Japan called “The Cove” (watch the trailer below), was tipped off about The Hump’s nefarious menu option. Crews that worked on the film helped to outfit two vegan women with a hidden camera before going into The Hump for a meal.

Once inside, the women ordered a $600 Chef’s Special called the omakase, and asked the server if they could sample whale meat. Eight pieces of what were described as whale by the server were then brought out to the two women, the Times reported.

The two women then took samples of the whale meat that were later verified through testing by Scott Baker, associate director of the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University. Baker’s tests found that the whale meat came from a Sei whale, an internationally protected species of whale identified as endangered.

Sei whales, the third largest in the world behind humpbacks and blue whales, are protected in the U.S. under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The law makes the sale of any whale meat illegal throughout the U.S.

“Someone should not be able to walk into a restaurant and order a plate of an endangered species,” U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. wrote in a news release.

The Typhoon Restaurant Inc., owners of The Hump, and Chef Kiyoshiro Yamamoto were named in the official criminal complaint filed in the Los Angeles area U.S. District Court.

Typhoon is currently renegotiating their lease with the city of Santa Monica, an aspect of the case councilmen said they would be taking into consideration while they debate on how to punish the company.

First he had to get his teeth fixed, then the courthouse nearly burnt down.

A random assortment of hold ups have dragged out the sentencing of rapper Lil Wayne, after he pleaded guilty last year to criminal charges of felony gun possession and agreed to spend a year in prison.

In mid February, the 27-year-old New Orleans native was allowed by a judge to go to Miami for an 8-hour root canal surgery on his bejeweled jaw. This past Tuesday, he was scheduled yet again to appear before a judge in New York City to be sentenced, but this time a fire stood in the way of Wayne’s prison time.

But the fire had nothing to do with Lil Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Carter.

New York City authorities said that part of a sprinkler system in the basement of a 17-story Manhattan courthouse was illegally disconnected. The lack of a working sprinkler system led to the fire growing to the point where the entire courthouse had to be shut down, according to the New York Times.

An electrical problem within temporary construction lighting in the basement of the large courthouse at 100 Centre Street caused the fire, according to the New York Fire Department. Smoke and soot filtered through the main lobbies in the building, and led to numerous cases being continued or moved to other nearby courtrooms, the New York Daily News reported.

Eight people, including five firefighters, were injured as a result of the fire, according to the Daily News.

Wayne’s sentencing was one of the continued cases.

“I would imagine he’s annoyed,” Stacey Richman, Wayne’s lawyer, said about the recent delay in the sentencing. “He wants to take care of his responsibilities.”

The rapper was originally scheduled to have started serving the year-long sentence at the Rikers Island prison in New York City.

In July 2007, police officers raided Wayne’s tour bus after a New York show when they reportedly caught Wayne and a crew member smoking marijuana in front of the bus. The raid yielded a .40 caliber semi-automatic gun on the bus as well as about three ounces of marijuana, according to the Daily News.

But the specter of a year-long prison sentence did not deter Wayne from performing.

Wayne appeared later in the evening after the courthouse fire onstage with rapper and mogul Jay-Z at his New York City Concert. Between court dates, Wayne also appeared on the new recording of the classic charity anthem “We Are the World” to raise funds and awareness for earthquake-ravaged Haiti.

Wayne is scheduled to return to court for sentencing on March 8.

Law enforcement authorities in Connecticut announced they will pursue a criminal investigation into what led to an explosion at a gas plant that killed five people, and said they have not ruled out negligence.

Middletown, Conn. Mayor Sebastian Giuliano was quoted saying that if the Kleen Energy Systems plant located within the town was running as it was supposed to, an explosion would not have happened, according to the Associated Press. No cause for the explosion has been discovered at this time, and authorities say investigations could take weeks.

Giuliano was also quoted saying that negligence can go to the point where it will be considered a criminal act and come under scrutiny of police.

Acting Middleton Police Chief Patrick McMahon said police detectives have determined that no intentional harm was done.

McMahon elaborated further that detectives are now focusing their investigative efforts on whether negligence came into play while workers were clearing air from gas lines when the explosion happened.

Aside from killing five people, the blast injured at least a dozen people and the shockwaves were felt as far as six miles away, AP reported. Survivors were later found among the rubble left behind by the explosion.

Aerial photos taken of the plant shortly after the explosion showed a large, burnt out gap in the middle of the two main smoke stacks at the center of the energy plant.

At least 50 people were in the area of the plant when the explosion happened around 11:15 a.m. Sunday, February 7. An exact number of people at the plant had been difficult to produce since several different contractors with their own individual staff lists were working at the time, according to AP.

The plant was in the process of construction to produce natural gas at about 620-megawatts. When the explosion happened, workers with the O&G Industries construction company were purging the gas lines of air. The procedure was described as a “blow down,” according to AP.

Gas line purging has been a controversial subject among the U.S. Chemical Safety Board and their investigators. Last year, a similar procedure performed at a Slim Jim manufacturing facility in North Carolina led to an explosion that killed four workers.

The board has also linked explosions in other plants and factories to workers venting gas lines unsafely within buildings.

Natural gas-powered plants are becoming more prominent throughout the U.S. for generating electricity, AP reported.

Natural gas emits roughly half of the greenhouse gases produced by coal-fueled plants and new technology allows supplies of natural gas to be tapped that could last for about 100 years.

The London-based office of convicted con artist Bernie Madoff will not be charged in the criminal investigation into a large investment scam resulting in billions of lost investments around the world.

The United Kingdom Serious Fraud Office said their investigators have not produced enough evidence against the London branch of Madoff’s operation to “provide a realistic prospect of conviction,” . But the SFO also pointed out they will continue to investigate a handful of funds with outposts in Europe that invested with Madoff in the search of “wider aspects of the fraud.”

In March 2009, the Manhattan-based investor pleaded guilty to one of the largest recorded Ponzi schemes in history. Madoff had used funds from new investors to pay off older investments in a vast pyramid-style scam that has resulted in $13 billion of lost investments, according to U.S. prosecutors.

The conviction has sparked numerous lawsuits in Europe and the U.S. as beguiled investors untangle a complicated system carried out by Madoff. The scheme involved selling investments with no real value, on the promise of a high return that would come through in a short period of time.

Madoff Securities International was mostly owned by Madoff himself and functioned as the main office for trading, according to Bloomberg. The office staff was comprised of about 25 people, including traders, support staff and office managers.

Defense attorney Nicola Finnerty, who is representing former Madoff Securities International CEO Stephen Raven, told Bloomberg that Raven is satisfied with the decision made by the SFO, and that “he and his directors have been fully exonerated.”

One of the main facets of Madoff’s Ponzi scheme was sending sums of money back and forth between his New York and London offices. U.S. prosecutors have found about $250 million was sent back and forth between the two offices, “to give the appearance that he was conducting securities transactions on behalf of the investors, when, in fact, he was not,” according to the indictment.

Madoff, now 71, is serving 150 years in federal prison in North Carolina as the main sentencing for the criminal charges filed against him in relation to the massive fraud.

While investors who gave money to Madoff and his offices are not being investigated, several of his former staff members have come under investigators’ scrutiny.

Stanley Chais, Madoff’s former money manager, is under a criminal investigation in the U.S. for channeling money to Madoff’s “business” through other accounts, Bloomberg reported.

Madoff’s chief aide Frank DiPascali, accountant David Friehling and computer programmers Jerome O’Hara and George Perez have also been charged in connection to the widespread scam.

Instead of “Hope,” Shepard Fairey might consider the word “Truth” as inspiration.

The Los Angeles-based street artist, who rose to fame during President Obama’s campaign when he designed the iconic “Hope” image, will face criminal charges as part of an ongoing legal dispute between him and the Associated Press.

According to theLos Angeles Times, a federal judge based in New York City announced during a hearing with both Fairey’s and the AP’s lawyers present that the artist would face a criminal investigation after his admitted misconduct in the case between him and AP.

In February 2009, AP filed a suit against Fairey claiming that he violated copyright laws by using one of their photographs as the basis for the “Hope” image. In response, Fairey fired back with a suit of his own, alleging that he was protected to use the image under fair use laws.

Last October, Fairey released a statement that he submitted false images and deleted others files of images during the course of legal proceedings, according to the LA Times. He tried to conceal the fact that the AP had correctly identified the photo he used as a base for his “Hope” poster while President Barack Obama was then campaigning for the position.

The image catapulted Fairey into fame as an artist. Fairey had cultivated a reputation as a guerilla artist after he put up a series of images around Los Angeles with the words “Obey Giant” listed near a scowling face (of late wrestler/actor Andre the Giant), designed to be similar to images described in George Orwell’s bleak government oppressed future in the novel “1984.”

Fairey has come under fire before for allegedly plagiarizing images in his own art work.

Throughout the case, there has been a question as to which Mannie Garcia photo I used as a reference to design the HOPE image, Fairey said in a statement last October. The AP claimed it was one photo, and I claimed it was another. While I initially believed that the photo I referenced was a different one, I discovered early on in the case that I was wrong. In an attempt to conceal my mistake I submitted false images and deleted other images.

An AP spokesperson told the LA Times that the news association has been subpoenaed to in connection to Fairey’s accused misconduct during legal actions.

Fairey’s defense attorneys declined to comment to the LA Times.

The doctor serving as Michael Jackson’s personal physician when he died recently hired a criminal defense attorney, according to ABC News.

Dr. Conrad Murray has not officially been charged in Jackson’s death from an overdose, but a legal team has been assembled for Dr. Murray, who could face a possible involuntary manslaughter charge in connection to Jackson’s death on June 25, 2009.

Glendale, California-based criminal defense attorney Michael Flanagan is the new addition to Murray’s legal team, the doctor’s lead attorney Ed Chernoff told the LA Times recently.

An autopsy performed on Jackson revealed the powerful sedative propofol in his system, which contributed to his death from a heart attack, Houston-based broadcast network KIAH reported.

Since Jackson’s death, Murray has admitted to prescribing the drug – which is also described as an anesthetic. Potential charges could also include gross negligence against the doctor.

Citing an unnamed source, the Associated Press reported that the Los Angeles Police Department’s investigation unit wrapped up their efforts into the cause of Jackson’s death. The LAPD will be presenting its case to the area district attorney’s office so a formal indictment can follow, according to AP.

“We have refused to comment on stories involving unnamed sources,” Chernoff said in a statement, in response to the possibility of charges against Murray.

A spokesperson for the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office said no decision has been made in Dr. Murray’s case.

Flanagan described the possibility of an involuntary manslaughter charge as “not surprising.”

This is not the first time Dr. Murray has been connected to legal consequences for prescribed use of propofol. One of his nurses was charged with involuntary manslaughter after propofol was used on a patient who died. But the nurse was acquitted of the charge, according to the LA Times.

In November, Dr. Murray returned to medical practice at his Houston, Texas based clinic.

Dr. Murray, who specializes in cardiology said publically at a church shortly after he reopened his Houston practice that he “was at the wrong place and at the wrong time.”

“I know what trouble is,” Dr. Murray said. “I, with my compassion, was only trying to help my fellow man.”

About six weeks after he reopened the Houston clinic, Dr. Murray was in court on a different matter. The doctor struck what the New York Daily News described as an “11th hour deal” to avoid jail time on charges of failure to pay child support.

Dr. Murray was reportedly $13,000 in debt from missed payments when he made the deal to pay just over $1,000 a month to his son’s mother Nenita Malibiran, and continue the payments.

Dr. Murray has reportedly fathered seven children by six different women, according to the Daily News.

Utah State Senator Sheldon Killpack recently resigned from the state legislature after he was arrested for allegedly driving under the influence, according to the Washington Post.

Although this was his first time accused, it was not his first experience with drunken driving. Killpack’s father was killed by a drunken driver when he was a teenager. Since then he became a strong advocate against driving under the influence.

The Washington Post reported that Killpack, the former Republican Utah state Senate majority leader, devoted his six years in office to efforts against drunken driving. He hoped to stop intoxicated drivers from cruising on the roads.

As a member of the Mormon Church, Killpack was encouraged to abstain from alcohol. Under the circumstance, Killpack thought it would be best to resign.

He made the decision to resign saying, I have a tremendous amount of respect for the legislative process. In light of that, I have decided to tender my resignation as majority leader and as a Utah state senator, effective immediately.

Senate President Michael Waddups said he did not advise Killpack to resign. He said that is was a personal matter in which he would need to figure out for himself.

Waddups also added that it might be difficult for Killpack to face his conservative constituents in light of the situation.

According to the Salt Lake Tribune, the evening Killpack was pulled over, he attended a boxing fundraiser for Representative Greg Hughes. No alcohol was served at the event.

The Utah Highway Patrol spotted Killpack’s vehicle driving erratically on the road several hours later.

The state trooper said he smelled a strong odor of alcohol coming from the senator. He then ordered Killpack to take field tests. Killpack obliged, but refused to give a breathalyzer test.

Killpack was arrested and taken to the Salt Lake County jail at around 2:45 a.m. and was released two hours later.

The UHP was able to get a warrant for a blood test to determine the senators blood alcohol content. It could take up to two weeks to a month before the test results are in and criminal charges are issued. No court date has been set at this time.

A two-year criminal investigation into rape charges against famed illusionist David Copperfield were dropped Tuesday without formal charges ever being filed, about a month after local police reported that his accuser made a separate false charge of sexual assault against a different man.

No official reason was given for closing the criminal investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Seattle, the branch in charge of looking into allegations against Copperfield. An assistant U.S. attorney made a motion Tuesday afternoon, effectively closing the case, according to the Associated Press.

The U.S. Attorney’s office released a statement saying that any investigation can be shut down without charges filed if no federal laws were broken, no federal jurisdiction entitles the office to look into a matter further or if the allegations couldn’t be proven beyond any reasonable doubt.

The statement also said Neither the investigation, nor its termination should be perceived as a comment on guilt or innocence, the AP reported.

She is disappointed, but it wasn’t completely unexpected given the jurisdictional issue of prosecuting him here for something that happened on his private island, said attorney Rebecca Roe, who represented the woman.

Copperfield’s defense attorneys Patty Eakes and Angelo Calfo said the illusionist denied all aspects of the charges and described the action as extortion for money, according to AP.

In a civil suit related to the case, the woman said Copperfield brought her up on stage during a 2007 show in Kennewick, WA. The suit continues to allege that Copperfield later invited the woman to his private island in the Bahamas, where he attacked her sexually after she arrived, according to AP.

The woman, described by the AP as a 23-year-old fashion model, waitress and former Miss Washington, has potential charges pending against her by Bellevue, WA, police of making a false or misleading statement to a public servant and prostitution.

On Dec. 2, the woman who accused Copperfield met with a man and another woman for drinks, according to AP. The other woman reportedly told police that she left the two because they were being very affectionate with each other, to the point where she didn’t feel comfortable around them.
The 23-year-old woman then went with the man to rent a hotel room. Surveillance cameras caught the two kissing and holding each other in the hotel lobby. Images from the cameras were included in the police file, AP reported.

The woman then told hotel staff the man tried to assault her, according to the police documents. But the man had also contacted police officers and said she left the room after he refused to pay $2,000 for sex, according to the report.

Attorney Roe described the police report as overblown.

A young Nigerian man was taken into custody for an alleged attempt to blow up an airplane on Christmas Day.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab boarded a plane flying into Detroit, Mich. carrying an explosive device.

According to a CNN article, he was arrested and now faces criminal charges of attempting to destroy the plane and placing a destructive device on the aircraft.

Abdulmutallab had a multi-entry visa into the United States. But the 23-year-old was added to a watch list of 550,000 potential terrorists.

Abdulmutallab’s father - Umar Abdulmutallab – stated he contacted the National Counter-Terrorism Center providing information about his son and shared his concerns of what his son was capable of.

Abdulmatallum’s family further stated that he was studying abroad in London when he disappeared and no longer communicated with them.

His father claimed Abdulmutallab’s new attitude was something the family had never seen before. He further claimed that Farouk was becoming “radicalized” and he felt that his son was planning something.

He also contacted the U.S Embassy in Nigeria to alert them of his son.

A U.S. official stated that the embassy flagged his visa so when he tried to renew it in six months they could investigate his visa renewal.

But he was never stopped or questioned before he boarded the plane.

When Abdulmatallum boarded the flight leaving Nigeria; he went through “regular screening.” He walked through a metal detector and his bag went through an x-ray machine.

He flew into Amsterdam and went through a second screening.

Next Abdulmatallum boarded Northwest Airlines Flight 253 to Detroit. There were 290 passengers on board. He injected chemicals into the explosive device that authorities say he had hidden in his underwear.

The bomb device contained an explosive chemical called pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN). He had enough of the explosive to blow a huge hole in the side of the plane.

According to a CNN article - passengers heard a popping noise on the plane and then saw his seat go up in flames.
The passengers were able to put out the fire and tackle him before any further issues could arise.

Abdulmutallab was taken to a nearby hospital to treat his injury burns and was released into the custody of a U.S. Marshall - as of now he has been taken to an undisclosed location.

The bomb is said to be from Yemen and according an LA Times article, the Yemen sector of Al Qaeda has claimed to be behind the bomb attempt.