Archive for the ‘ U.S. Department of Justice ’ Category

WashPost: Obama struggles to get beyond a scandal trifecta

Barack Obama

President Obama addressed the IRS controversy Wednesday evening, announcing that the acting commissioner of the IRS has resigned. Obama reiterated that he “would not tolerate this kind of behavior.”

By Karen Tumulty
Published: May 15 E-mail the writer

The most corrosive political scandals are the ones that feed a pre­existing story line — which is why the White House could have difficulty putting the current ones behind it any time soon.

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By Sean Sullivan
Published: May 14, 2013

More than four dozen media organizations joined forces Tuesday to sharply rebuke the Justice Department for secretly gathering the phone records of Associated Press journalists, calling on the department to promptly return the records and disclose all other pending subpoenas related to the news media.

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Shane Goldmacher
May 14 2013, 4:39 PM ET

As three separate scandals – the IRS targeting the tea party, the Justice Department’s phone-records grab from the AP, and Benghazi – erupt simultaneously, congressional Republicans are hoping to fold them into a single narrative of an unaccountable and overreaching White House that cannot be trusted.

As Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., put it colorfully during a Fox News appearance, “This sounds like a president somewhat drunk on power.”

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Barack Obama

By Scott Wilson
May 13, 2013

There was a guiding principle early in President Obama’s first term that in Washington it is always better to be pitching than catching.

The stimulus bill, the bank and auto industry bailouts, Wall Street regulation, health-care legislation, Muslim outreach abroad — the first two years featured Obama as pitcher.

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DOJ

Prosecutors targeted the Associated Press in an attempt to learn who leaked information about the CIA and an apparent terrorist plot in Yemen.

Government secretly probed AP phone records
By Richard A. Serrano, Washington Bureau
May 13, 2013, 9:33 p.m.

WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors secretly obtained telephone records from more than 20 lines belonging to the Associated Press and its journalists in an attempt to learn who leaked information on how the CIA thwarted an apparent terrorist plot hatched in Yemen.

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SacBee: Former CalPERS executive pleads innocent to conspiracy charges

By Dale Kasler
dkasler@sacbee.com
Published: Wednesday, May. 8, 2013 – 1:40 pm
Last Modified: Wednesday, May. 8, 2013 – 3:56 pm

Former CalPERS Chief Executive Fred Buenrostro pleaded innocent today to conspiracy charges in connection with the pension fund’s bribery scandal.

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LATimes: Gun crime has plunged, but Americans think it’s up, study says

Hand Gun open carry

More than half of Americans think gun crime has jumped, the Bureau of Justice Statistics report noted. Researchers aren’t sure why there’s the misperception.

By Emily Alpert, Los Angeles Times
May 7, 2013, 8:59 p.m.

The number of violent crimes involving guns has plummeted in the last two decades, but more than half of Americans think the opposite is true, according to reports released Tuesday.

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The PE: MORENO VALLEY: Mayor claims grand jury probe underway

Moreno Valley seal

May 06, 2013; 06:38 PM

Moreno Valley Mayor Tom Owings put out a statement late Monday asserting he had reason to believe a grand jury will begin to collect testimony Wednesday, May 8, as part of a wide-ranging investigation into corruption by federal enforcement agencies.

To read story by Debra Gruszecki in The Press Enterprise, click here.

The PE: CORRUPTION: Task force increasingly visible in local investigations

Mike Ramos

“It just makes a bigger statement to the world that politics has nothing to do with doing what’s right and holding these people responsible,” Ramos said. “It takes the wind out of the sails of these people that claim this is a political investigation.”

May 04, 2013; 05:24 PM

Law enforcement officials first announced the formation of a task force focused on political corruption in November 2010, when FBI agents and San Bernardino County district attorney’s investigators raided Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton.

To read story by Imran Ghori in The Press Enterprise, click here.

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/04/2013 06:22:53 PM PDT

In 2010, San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael Ramos announced the formation of the Inland Empire Joint Corruption Task Force, prompted by allegations of rampant corruption in local government. His announcement followed an FBI raid at the county-run Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, where it was alleged that some public officials had been receiving free medical care.

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The PE: MORENO VALLEY: Searches early step in investigation

Moreno Valley seal

May 01, 2013; 06:20 PM

The scene that played out in Moreno Valley this week was a familiar one in the Inland area: FBI agents and other law enforcement officials raiding homes and offices as part of a public corruption investigation.

To read story by Imran Ghori in The Press Enterprise, click here.

The PE: MORENO VALLEY: Homes, business searched in political corruption probe

fbi

April 30, 2013; 08:32 AM

Federal and local agents served search warrants on Tuesday, April 30, at the homes of Moreno Valley’s five City Council members, a real estate broker with political connections and the corporate office of Skechers warehouse developer Highland Fairview.

To read story by Lora Hines, Jeff Horseman, John Asbury and Imran Ghori in The Press Enterprise, click here.

The PE: MORENO VALLEY: FBI, IRS serving search warrants

FBI

April 30, 2013; 08:32 AM

Federal and local agents served search warrants throughout in Moreno Valley on Tuesday morning, April 30, raiding the homes of the city’s mayor, all five City Council members, a businessman with close political connections and the corporate offices of development company Highland Fairview.

To read story by Lora Hines, Jeff Horseman, Richard K. De Atley and John Asbury in The Press Enterpise, click here.

InlandPolitics: Is San Bernardino County DA behind the eight ball?

Eight Ball

Tuesday, March 26, 2013 – 10:30 a.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, March 27, 2013 – 09:15 a.m.

Is San Bernardino County District Attorney Mike Ramos finally behind the eight ball?

Could a chain of events finally be in-play that has many local politicos, movers and shakers, and campaign contributors cringing?

Read the rest of this entry »

March 25, 2013; 09:25 AM

A long-running investigation into business dealings at the San Bernardino International Airport Authority resulted in criminal charges and the arrest of former airport developer Scot Spencer, District Attorney Michael Ramos announced Monday, March 25.

To read story by Iman Ghori in The Press Enterprise, click here.

SacBee: Two former CalPERS officials indicted

calpers

By Dale Kasler
dkasler@sacbee.com
Published: Tuesday, Mar. 19, 2013 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Tuesday, Mar. 19, 2013 – 8:20 am

It was the biggest scandal in CalPERS’ history, with allegations of top officials trading pension fund investments for junkets, jobs and other favors.

What made it a criminal case, prosecutors say, was a handful of phony letters.

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LATimes: Government wins round in suit accusing Wells Fargo of FHA abuse

wells fargo logo

By E. Scott Reckard
February 13, 2013, 1:27 p.m.

A government lawsuit accusing No. 1 home lender Wells Fargo & Co. of defrauding a federal mortgage-insurance program is shaping up as a knock-down battle between the San Francisco bank and the U.S. Justice Department.

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LATimes: Execs off the hook at S&P

Standard & Poor's

The federal and state lawsuits against S&P are well and good, but no people are on the hook in these cases. What kind of deterrence is that?

By Michael Hiltzik
February 9, 2013, 6:55 a.m.

You may have heard last week about a couple of big lawsuits brought by federal and state governments, alleging that the credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s concocted a fraudulent scheme that contributed to trillions of dollars in investment losses and the cratering of pretty much the entire world financial system.

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prime-healthcare-logo

Health & Welfare | Daily Report | Decoding Prime
February 6, 2013 | Lance Williams

The Prime Healthcare Services hospital chain has acknowledged it is the target of two federal investigations: a U.S. Justice Department probe of its Medicare billings and an inquiry into alleged violations of patient confidentiality laws.

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LATimes: Justice Department sues S&P over mortgage bond ratings

Standard and Poor's

The government sues Standard & Poor’s, saying it improperly gave high marks to mortgage securities that failed and sparked the financial crisis.

By Alejandro Lazo and Andrew Tangel, Los Angeles Times
February 4, 2013, 10:14 p.m.

The federal government is embarking on one of its most ambitious efforts to assign blame for the financial crisis, going after Wall Street’s biggest credit rating firm for its role in pumping up the housing bubble.

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SFChronicle: Marijuana-dispensary court ruling stands

judges-gavel

Bob Egelko
Updated 8:57 pm, Friday, January 18, 2013

The state Supreme Court has denied prosecutors’ request to review a ruling to allow large nonprofit dispensaries to sell medical marijuana, a case that could affect the federal government’s attempt to shut down the giant Harborside dispensary in Oakland.

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DailyBulletin: Marijuana dispensary operator Aaron Sandusky sentenced to 10 years

Wes Woods II, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/07/2013 10:23:43 AM PST
Updated: 01/07/2013 06:40:13 PM PST

LOS ANGELES – A former medical marijuana dispensary owner on Monday was sentenced to 10 years in prison for operating three facilities in the Inland Empire.

Aaron Sandusky, one of only a handful of defendants to fight U.S. prosecutors, was convicted in October on federal charges of distributing marijuana.

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Wes Woods II and Sandra Emerson, Staff Writers
Posted: 01/05/2013 06:10:08 AM PST
Updated: 01/05/2013 10:03:27 PM PST

LOS ANGELES – Former G3 Holistic Inc. medical marijuana dispensary president Aaron Sandusky is expected to be sentenced to federal prison on Monday for up to 10 years.

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DailyBulletin: Co-defendant in Pomierski case is sentenced to one year

By Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 09/09/2012 02:11:52 PM PDT

RIVERSIDE — A Rancho Cucamonga man was sentenced Monday to 12 months and one day in prison for aiding Upland’s former mayor in soliciting a bribe from a city business.

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By Andrew Edwards, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 09/10/2012 11:23:19 AM PDT
Updated: 09/10/2012 08:25:26 PM PDT

Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday asked for a federal investigation of Wall Street figures he accused of colluding “to restrain trade and to redline communities” over opposition to a controversial proposal to use eminent domain to prevent foreclosures in San Bernardino County.

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DailyBulletin: Upland contractor Hennes sentenced in federal bribery case

By Sandra Emerson
Created: 08/27/2012 12:26:25 PM PDT

Upland contractor John Hennes was sentenced today to 12 months — six months in jail and six months of home confinement — for his role in a federal bribery case involving former Upland mayor John Pomierski and a local business.

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The Sun: Watchdog group criticizes Lewis investigation

Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 08/14/2012 03:04:15 PM PDT

The Washington D.C. watchdog group that six years ago called for an investigation of Rep. Jerry Lewis today released a report critical of the resulting probe, which ended without any charges being filed against the Redlands congressman.

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InlandPolitics: An example of a county justice system gone wrong

Tuesday, August 14, 2012 – 10:30 a.m.

It’s not often when you can witness a justice system being abused.

Abused in plain sight for that matter!

But, in San Bernardino County, a place that operates more like a banana republic than a state subdivision, it’s routine.

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Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 08/06/2012 08:57:54 AM PDT

RIVERSIDE – Former Upland Mayor John Pomierski was sentenced Monday to two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to a federal bribery charge.

Pomierski was sentenced during a hearing at U.S. District Court in Riverside for accepting a $5,000 payment from the property owner of Chronic Cantina restaurant in Upland in exchange for helping him obtain a conditional use permit.

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InlandPolitics: It’s two years for Former Upland Mayor Pomierski

 Pomierski

Monday, August 6, 2012 – 02:25 p.m.

It’s a two year federal prison sentence for Former Upland Mayor John “J.P.” Pomierski.

The sentence related to Pomierski’s plea to accepting a $5,000 bribe was handed down by U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips in Riverside on Monday afternoon.

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LATimes: Former Service Employees International Union leader indicted

By Paul Pringle and Richard Winton Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
July 31, 2012, 6:27 p.m.

Not long ago, Tyrone Freeman was a rising young star in the national labor movement, already the head of California’s biggest union local and a force in Democratic politics from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C.

Freeman’s quick climb up the ranks of the powerful Service Employees International Union burnished his reputation as an effective advocate for the disadvantaged, a man who helped improve the lot of about 190,000 workers paid about $9 an hour to provide in-home care for the infirm.

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InlandPolitics: It’s time Feds takeover San Bernardino matter

Friday, July 13, 2012 – 10:45 a.m.

It took less than forty-eight hours for the San Bernardino financial collapse to become a political football for those in county government who love to grandstand.

We’re gonna investigate! Yes sir we are!

As a matter of fact, we already have an ongoing investigation!

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LATimes: Grand jury report tells story of Victorville’s plunging fortunes

The city of Victorville paid $375,000 for this property in 2007, with plans to build a 500-megawatt power plant in the area. The home sits abandoned and the power plant is unbuilt, another failed project that has contributed to Victorville’s financial disaster, according to a grand jury report. (Irfan Khan, Los Angeles Times / June 5, 2012)

 

By Phil Willon, Los Angeles Times
July 8, 2012

Victorville hoped to strike it rich with a new hybrid gas and solar power plant near the old George Air Force Base, buying up homesteads for the site amid the High Desert’s real estate boom.

The city shelled out $375,000 alone to Chris Massey and his family in 2007 to buy a tiny house plopped on five desolate acres of scrub and Joshua trees — 10 times the property’s assessed value.

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InlandPolitics: Grand Jury report just the start

Sunday, July 1, 2012 – 10:00 a.m.

One shoe has finally dropped in the long-running saga over Victorville’s finances.

On Friday, the San Bernardino County Grand Jury issued a scathing report on its findings that politicos and bureaucrats, past and present, plundered the city’s coffers in order to aid certain benefactors.

In other words, all the rules went out the door.

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VVDailyPress: Details on grand jury’s Victorville investigation

 

June 29, 2012 1:11 PM
Brooke Edwards Staggs

The San Bernardino County Grand Jury issued a 100-page report Friday blasting Victorville for decisions that have jeopardized the city’s solvency, including mishandling bond funds, losing track of $13 million and potentially breaking the law by financing failed energy ventures with restricted money. Read more about the report here and read the entire report here.

Here are the five areas of concern cited by the grand jury. Click on the headlines below each section to read related background stories:

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VVDailyPress: Grand Jury slams Victorville

FBI, SEC investigations continue
June 29, 2012 1:03 PM
From Staff Reports

VICTORVILLE • The San Bernardino County Grand Jury issued a 100-page report Friday blasting Victorville for decisions that have jeopardized the city’s solvency, including mishandling bond funds, losing track of $13 million and potentially breaking the law by financing failed energy ventures with restricted money.

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DailyBulletin: San Bernardino County fights for immigrant prison funds

 

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Created: 06/27/2012 04:31:58 PM PDT

A new policy that could slash the amount of federal funding San Bernardino County receives for housing illegal immigrants at its jails has the Board of Supervisors fighting mad.

On Tuesday, the board authorized a request for funding from the federal government to cover at least part of the costs for incarcerating illegal immigrants suspected of criminal activity, which cost the county more than $17 million last year.

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The Sun: Grand jury findings on Victorville to be released Friday

Findings from an unprecedented three-year Grand Jury investigation into allegations of fiscal mismanagement and corruption in Victorville will be released Friday. The city is also under investigation by the FBI and the Securities and Exchange Commission, official sources say.

 

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 06/26/2012 01:19:33 PM PDT

Findings from a three-year grand jury investigation into allegations of fiscal mismanagement and corruption in Victorville are expected to be released Friday.

The grand jury concluded its unprecedented investigation in April, but Victorville City Manager Doug Robertson, who reviewed the report, said he signed a confidentiality agreement and cannot discuss any of the findings until its release to the public Friday.

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The PE: FAST & FURIOUS: House panel cites Holder

Congressman Darrell Issa

 

BY BEN GOAD
WASHINGTON BUREAU
bgoad@pe.com

Published: 20 June 2012 01:24 PM

WASHINGTON — A House panel led by Inland Rep. Darrell Issa voted to hold U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress, a rare move that could lead to a criminal probe into the Justice Department’s handling of a botched anti-gun trafficking operation.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s vote to issue a contempt citation came Wednesday, June 20, during a dramatic hearing in which the White House attempted to sidestep the contempt vote by invoking executive privilege.

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DailyBulletin: Upland, feds deny G3 attorney’s allegation

By Wes Woods II and Sandra Emerson
Created: 06/20/2012 06:08:08 PM PDT

UPLAND – City Manager Stephen Dunn this week pushed back against accusations that the city has asked the federal government to crack down on the G3 Holistic medical marijuana dispensary.

Attorney Roger Jon Diamond has said the city is out to get his client, G3 Holistic President Aaron Sandusky, for continuing to fight Upland over medical marijuana issues in court.

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DailyBulletin: Fourth co-defendant in Pomierski case pleads guilty

Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 05/03/2012 08:54:13 AM PDT

Anthony Orlando Sanchez pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court in Riverside, admitting to conspiracy to commit bribery.

Sanchez, 36, was charged with acting as a conduit between an Upland business and former Mayor John Pomierski. Pomierski pleaded guilty last week in the bribery case.

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InlandPolitics: Pomierski enters guilty plea (-Update-)

Pomierski

Thursday, April 26, 2012 – 11:45 a.m.

Former Upland Mayor John “J.P.” Pomierski entered into a plea agreement before Federal Judge Virginia Philips in U.S. District Court in Riverside on Thursday morning.

The plea agreement stems from charges related to influence peddling.

Read the rest of this entry »

InlandPolitics: Is there a plea deal in Upland corruption case?

Pomierski

Tuesday, April 17, 2012 – 10:55 a.m.

Is there a plea deal in the long-running Upland corruption case against former Upland Mayor John “J.P.” Pomierski?

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DailyBulletin: Federal court reviewing another postponement of Pomierski trial

Pomierski

Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 04/04/2012 04:19:12 PM PDT

A federal court judge in Riverside is considering a request to postpone former Upland Mayor John Pomierski’s trial for the third time.

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SacBee: Kinde Durkee pleads guilty to $7 million embezzlement scheme

Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
March 30, 2012

Democratic campaign treasurer Kinde Durkee pleaded guilty this morning to defrauding her clients of at least $7 million, bringing to a close a case that one official has called the “most extensive campaign treasurer fraud in the history of California.”

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SacBee: Kinde Durkee to plead guilty in embezzlement case

Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
March 27, 2012

Democratic campaign treasurer Kinde Durkee is expected to plead guilty to stealing millions from the accounts she controlled for her California political clients, according to two sources close to the case.

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InlandPolitics: An interesting Los Angeles Times op-ed

Former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens is shown arriving at federal court in Washington on April 7, 2009. (Gerald Herbert / AP Photo / March 19, 2012)

 

Op-Ed
Ted Stevens and the department of injustice

An inquiry tells the story of government lawyers who failed to live up to their professional responsibilities and thus failed to give the former Alaska senator a fair trial.

By Michael Carey
March 19, 2012

As his trial on corruption charges approached in the fall of 2008, Ted Stevens railed to me in an email: “What did I do, Michael? What did I do?” The wounded rage smoldering in that rhetorical question to a reporter reflected his belief that he had done nothing wrong. He continued to insist on his innocence after a Washington, D.C., jury found him guilty of lying on financial disclosure forms.

Stevens’ conviction was dismissed in 2009 after the Justice Department’s admission that government lawyers failed to turn over evidence the Stevens defense should have received. U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan, who presided over Stevens’ trial, soon authorized an investigation of the prosecutors’ conduct, a move as rare as the trial of a U.S. senator.

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The Sun: Postmus remarks to feds raises questions

Postmus

By Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/10/2012 03:03:31 PM PST

An admission by former San Bernardino County Assessor Bill Postmus to federal authorities that he used methamphetamine dozens of times in 2011 has a defense attorney in a far-reaching county corruption case questioning the tactics of prosecutors.

The admission came during an Oct. 14 interview with assistant U.S. attorneys Jerry Behnke and Joseph Widman and FBI agent Jonathan Zeitlin, when Postmus told the trio what he knew about an alleged corruption scandal state and local prosecutors are calling the biggest in county history.

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The PE: VIDEO: PE Crime Blotter – Ex-assessor’s stories conflict

Former San Bernardino County Assessor Bill Postmus

Published: 14 February 2012 06:04 PM

A look at crime in the Inland region, from a Rialto shooting to a cockfighting raid to the theft of the Storm mascot’s quad.

To view video, click here.

The PE: S.B. COUNTY: Postmus interview raises questions

Bill Postmus

BY IMRAN GHORI
STAFF WRITER
ighori@pe.com

Published: 13 February 2012 09:50 PM

In an FBI interview former San Bernardino County Assessor Bill Postmus said he did not view a $100,000 campaign contribution from Colonies Partners as a bribe even though he expected to receive funds following a lawsuit settlement.

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The Sun: $100,000 contribution not a bribe from Colonies, says Postmus

Postmus

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 02/08/2012 06:05:39 PM PST

In an October interview with federal authorities, former San Bernardino County Assessor Bill Postmus said he did not consider a $100,000 campaign contribution from Colonies Partners LP a bribe.

Postmus’ statement, from an interview transcript obtained by The Sun, appears to contradict his guilty plea to charges of conspiracy and bribery in state court, where prosecutors contend campaign contributions to political action committees were part of a conspiracy by Colonies to secure a huge settlement to a land-rights dispute with the county.

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LATimes: Justice Department signs off on California redistricting

PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 17, 2012 | 6:18 pm

The citizens commission that drew California’s new political maps won an important nod Tuesday from the Department of Justice, which signed off on the new congressional, legislative and Board of Equalization districts for four Northern California counties.

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InlandPolitics: Sanchez held without bail in Pomierski corruption case

Tuesday, January 17, 2012 – 06:00 p.m.

So much for that plea deal way back when!

Anthony Orlando Sanchez, 36, plead not guilty to extortion and bribery charges this afternoon in U.S. District Court in Riverside.

Read the rest of this entry »

InlandPolitics: Fugitive in Pomierski bribery case arrested

Sunday, January 5, 2012 – 11:30 p.m.

A federal fugitive tied to the corruption case involving former Upland Mayor John “J.P.” Pomierski was taken into custody Sunday afternoon.

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CaliforniaWatch: FBI interviews Prime Hospital patient as inquiry widens

Health & Welfare | Daily Report | Decoding Prime

January 9, 2012 | Lance Williams

FBI agents interviewed a former Shasta County hospital patient Friday amid indications of a widening federal inquiry into Medicare billing practices at the Prime Healthcare Services hospital chain.

Read the rest of this entry »

DailyBulletin: Upland to face litigation, budget and scandals in 2012

Sandra Emerson, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Created: 12/30/2011 12:17:57 PM PST

UPLAND – The city experienced a number of controversies in 2011 and will continue to deal with some of the legal ramifications in 2012.

Former Mayor John Pomierski’s federal trial is set for April, which may occur during the city election when the mayor’s seat and a council seat is up for re-election.

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The PE: GAMBLING: Feds silent on California’s push, for now

BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 20 December 2011 08:48 PM

SACRAMENTO – Last summer, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.

The unlikely pair – Reid, a Democrat, is allied with gaming interests in his home state, and Kyl is a gambling critic and powerful Republican – asked that Holder “reiterate the (Department of Justice’s) longstanding position that federal law prohibits gambling over the Internet, including intra-state gambling” or else explain what the department thinks.

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InlandPolitics: Too late to runaway from airport debacle

The aircraft pictured above, now valued as worthless, was used as collateral for a $500,000 public loan to contractor Scot Spencer.

Monday, December 19, 2011 – 10:15 a.m.

Nice try. But it’s too late!

Too late, for those involved, to runaway from the mess at the San Bernardino International Airport Authority (SBIAA) and Inland Valley Development Agency (IVDA) that is.

Read the rest of this entry »

InlandPolitics: S.B. Airport investigation costs Highland $10 million grant

Friday, December 16, 2011 – 10:00 a.m.
Last Modified: Saturday, December 17, 2011 – 10:39 a.m.

A $10 million Federal Highway Administration grant to the city of Highland is no more.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Created: 12/13/2011 06:15:13 PM PST

ONTARIO – A spokesman for Prime Healthcare Services said the company is unaware of any federal investigation or review of its operations following a published report that the FBI has contacted former employees.

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CaliforniaWatch: FBI questioning former Prime hospital coders

December 13, 2011 | Christina Jewett

The FBI is interviewing witnesses about billing practices at Prime Healthcare Services, the hospital chain that has charged Medicare for treating elderly patients with rare medical conditions at far higher rates than other California hospitals.

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WSJ Opinion: Are Prosecutors Above the Law?

Despite their shocking misconduct, federal prosecutors in the Ted Stevens trial may not be charged with criminal contempt.

By Jim Morhard
Saturday, December 3, 2011

After federal district court Judge Emmet Sullivan dismissed the conviction of former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens on charges of failing to properly report gifts, he ordered an investigation of the prosecutors. Quoting from the report (which is sealed until January), the judge recently explained that the investigators found ample evidence that the prosecution of Stevens (who was killed in a plane crash last year) was “permeated by the systematic concealment of significant exculpatory evidence which would have independently corroborated his defense and his testimony, and seriously damaged the testimony and credibility of the government’s key witness.”

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PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
December 6, 2011 | 2:59 pm

Kinde Durkee Three months after the arrest of campaign treasurer Kinde Durkee on suspicion of mishandling political funds from a state lawmaker’s account, federal prosecutors said Tuesday they need more time to complete their investigation to determine whether other politicians lost money.

Read the rest of this entry »

DailyBulletin: Contractor named in indictment with ex-mayor pleads guilty

Sandra Emerson, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Created: 12/06/2011 12:05:33 PM PST

UPLAND – An Upland contractor who was named in an 11-count indictment along with former Mayor John Pomierski has pleaded guilty to two of the four counts against him.

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Morris

Josh Dulaney, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 12/05/2011 07:59:34 PM PST

SAN BERNARDINO – An effort to get Mayor Pat Morris to speak from the dais about the ongoing federal investigation at San Bernardino International Airport was thwarted Monday night at the City Council meeting.

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The Sentinel: Feds’ presence in county betrays DA’s prosecutorial malaise

San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael Ramos

By Mark Gutglueck
Friday, December 2, 2011

Federal prosecutors have horned in on an unprecedented number of high profile political corruption cases that would otherwise be handled by the district attorney’s office in San Bernardino County. In some matters, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has wrested from district attorney Mike Ramos prosecutorial authority or has opened with the FBI parallel investigations into issues Ramos or the San Bernardino County Grand Jury have delved into without reaching a successful conclusion. In at least three matters, federal prosecutors and investigators have taken on probes or investigations of elected officials or political donors with whom Ramos was politically aligned.

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The PE: S.B. COUNTY: Corruption case defense wins grand jury testimony

A defendant in the Colonies corruption case wins the unsealing of comments from a different grand jury

BY IMRAN GHORI
STAFF WRITER
ighori@pe.com

Published: 29 November 2011 09:29 AM

A San Bernardino County judge on Tuesday ordered the grand jury testimony of a former county official unsealed as part of a government corruption case.

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InlandPolitics: Victorville on verge of default, while leaders seek higher office

Friday, November 25, 2011 – 10:30 a.m.

Victorville can’t pay its debt service payments, while some of the city’s leaders want area voters to place them into higher office.

Laugh out loud!

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NYTimes: Medical Marijuana Industry Is Unnerved by U.S. Crackdown

Steve DeAngelo of the Harborside Health Center in Oakland. Medical marijuana is legal in California, but federal prosecutors have been targeting it.

By ERIK ECKHOLM
Published: November 23, 2011

UKIAH, Calif. — An intensifying federal crackdown on growers and sellers of state-authorized medical marijuana has badly shaken the billion-dollar industry, which has sprung up in California since voters approved medical use of the drug in 1996, and has highlighted the stark contradiction between federal and state policies.

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Joe Nelson, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Created: 11/18/2011 02:43:50 PM PST

A federal judge on Friday denied a request by Rancho Cucamonga developer Jeff Burum’s attorney to essentially void an FBI search of Burum’s home and office by ordering the return of all materials seized during the search.

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SFChronicle: Mortgage fraud: State a holdout in bank settlement

State Attorney General Kamala Harris says homeowners deserve more from the banks.(Rich Pedroncelli / AP)

Andrew S. Ross, Chronicle Columnist

Sunday, November 13, 2011

With all due respect to the Occupy Wall Street movement and its local offshoots, there are some real battles being waged on behalf of members of the 99 percent that have little do with tent encampments, general strikes and shutting down the Port of Oakland.

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DailyBulletin: Judge says FBI searches in Colonies case appear just

Joe Nelson and Mike Cruz, Staff Writers
Created: 11/10/2011 04:48:37 PM PST

RIVERSIDE – A federal judge seemed poised to rule that federal agents did not violate the civil rights of Rancho Cucamonga developer Jeff Burum when they served search warrants at his home and office in September.

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The Sun: Materials seized in FBI raid returned to Burum

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 11/09/2011 05:33:36 PM PST

An attorney for Rancho Cucamonga developer Jeff Burum said federal officials on Wednesday returned all materials seized from Burum’s home and office during an FBI raid on Sept. 15.

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LATimes: Medical marijuana advocates sue to halt dispensary closings

The Harborside Health Clinic in Oakland is a $20-million-a-year dispensary. (Robert Galbraith / Reuters)

By John Hoeffel, Los Angeles Times
November 7, 2011, 7:45 p.m.

Medical marijuana advocates have filed lawsuits in California’s four federal judicial districts aimed at quickly winning court orders to halt the U.S. attorneys from closing dispensaries.

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Aaron Sandusky, from Rancho Cucamonga, stands at the Bud Bar of G3 Holistic Inc. in Upland Friday November 4, 2011. Sandusky had all 3 of his medical marijuana despenceries (Moreno Valley and Colton), along with a warehouse in Ontario, raided and shutdown by federal and local officials. (Will Lester/Staff Photographer)

Marijuana clinics owner ‘in a pickle’
By Wes Woods II, Staff Writer
Created: 11/04/2011 06:49:25 PM PDT

Aaron Sandusky has had a rough week.

Sandusky, 41, has been trying to keep his medical marijuana dispensaries open in Upland, Moreno Valley and Colton.

On Tuesday, raids were conducted on the three dispensaries as well as his Rancho Cucamonga home and the Rialto home of his partner John Nuckolls.

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