#Criminal Tax Defense Lawyer

[twgjacksonville]

Tax Workout Group 50 N. Laura Street, Suite 2500, Jacksonville, FL 32202 (904) 544-3778 https://taxworkoutgroup.com/location/jacksonville

Tax Workout Group is a tax attorney firm in Jacksonville, FL, comprised of two main practice groups: Tax Controversy Group and Tax Bankruptcy Group. These two practice groups are comprised of IRS tax and tax bankruptcy attorneys, IRS tax auditors, IRS collection division personnel, Certified Public Accountants, and experienced paralegals and administrative support staff. For each engagement, we assign a highly qualified team of professionals headed by a tax attorney so that every client receives extraordinary senior-level attention throughout the handling of their case.

[twgorlando]

Tax Workout Group 121 S Orange Avenue, Suite 1500, Orlando, FL 32801 (321) 430-1045 https://taxworkoutgroup.com/location/orlando

Tax Workout Group is a tax attorney firm in Orlando, FL, comprised of two main practice groups: Tax Controversy Group and Tax Bankruptcy Group. These two practice groups are comprised of IRS tax and bankruptcy attorneys, IRS tax auditors, IRS collection division personnel, Certified Public Accountants, and experienced paralegals and administrative support staff. For each engagement, we assign a highly qualified team of professionals headed by a tax attorney so that every client receives extraordinary senior-level attention throughout the handling of their case.

[twgmiami]

Tax Workout Group

Tax Workout Group 2915 Biscayne Blvd.,Suite 300,Miami, FL 33137 (305) 203-1563 https://taxworkoutgroup.com/location/miami

Tax Workout Group is a tax attorney firm in Miami, FL, comprised of two main practice groups: Tax Controversy Group and Tax Bankruptcy Group. These two practice groups are comprised of IRS tax and tax bankruptcy attorneys, IRS tax auditors, IRS collection division personnel, Certified Public Accountants, and experienced paralegals and administrative support staff. For each engagement, we assign a highly qualified team of professionals headed by a tax attorney so that every client receives extraordinary senior-level attention throughout the handling of their case.

[leadindia011]

The ten best types of Delhi lawyers, such as Criminal Defense Lawyers, Corporate Lawyers, Family Lawyers, Personal Injury Lawyers, Real Estate Lawyers, Intellectual Property (IP) Lawyers, Immigration Lawyers, Tax Lawyers, Employment Lawyers and Environmental Lawyers, covering various legal specializations are available for instant contact.

[simply-ivanka]

What Did the Biden Family’s Foreign Clients Get for their Money?

Hunter Biden pleads guilty to federal tax charges.

Wall Street Journal

By James Freeman

Hunter Biden has been convicted of federal crimes for not paying all the taxes he owed on his foreign income. But the most important question for Americans remains unanswered: What exactly did his overseas clients get in return for their money? His Thursday guilty plea on tax charges prevented testimony that may have gone some way toward providing an answer. This potential testimony may also explain why Hunter Biden waited until now to acknowledge his guilt.

The Journal’s Sara Randazzo, Ryan Barber and Annie Linskey report from Los Angeles:

Federal prosecutors signaled an aggressive strategy as the trial drew near, previewing an approach that would show how foreign interests paid the younger Biden to influence the U.S. government while his father was vice president during the Obama administration. Prosecutors said they planned to cast a light on a lucrative arrangement with a Romanian real-estate magnate who was facing a corruption investigation in his home country, along with his ties to the oil company CEFC China Energy and his tenure on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian gas company. 

In court Thursday, [prosecutor Leo Wise] insisted on reading the entirety of the 56-page indictment into the record—over the objection of Biden’s lawyer—to establish the facts underlying the guilty plea. 

Alanna Durkin Richer reported last month for the Associated Press:

Hunter Biden’s lawyers say prosecutors are inappropriately trying to insert “politically-charged” allegations about his foreign business dealings into the upcoming federal tax trial against the president’s son.

Special counsel David Weiss’ team told the judge last week that they plan to call to the witness stand a business associate of Hunter Biden’s to testify about an arrangement with a Romanian businessman who was trying to “influence U.S. government policy” during Joe Biden’s term as vice president…

The Romanian businessman, Gabriel Popoviciu, wanted U.S. government agencies to probe a bribery investigation he was facing in his home country in the hopes that would end his legal trouble, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors say Hunter Biden agreed with his business associate to help Popoviciu fight the criminal charges against him. But prosecutors say they were concerned that “lobbying work might cause political ramifications” for Joe Biden, so the arrangement was structured in a way that “concealed the true nature of the work” for Popoviciu, prosecutors alleged…

In fact, Popoviciu and Hunter’s business associate agreed that they would be paid for their work to “attempt to influence U.S. government agencies to investigate the Romanian investigation,” prosecutors said. Hunter Biden’s business associate was paid more than $3 million, which was split with Hunter and another business partner, prosecutors say.

Ms. Richer also noted that Hunter Biden’s defense lawyers “slammed prosecutors for showcasing ‘these matters on the eve of Mr. Biden’s trial—when there is no mention of political influence in the 56-page Indictment.�� ” The A.P. story continued:

“The Special Counsel’s unnecessary change of tactic merely echoes the baseless and false allegations of foreign wrongdoing which have been touted by House Republicans to use Mr. Biden’s proper business activities in Romania and elsewhere to attack him and his father,” the defense wrote.

But the defense has now opted not to defend.

Of course Romania is not the only foreign jurisdiction that proved fruitful for the Biden family business. The majority staff of several House committees recently reported:

From 2014 to the present… Biden family members and their associates received over $27 million from foreign individuals or entities…

Witnesses acknowledged that Hunter Biden involved Vice President Biden in many of his business dealings with Russian, Romanian, Chinese, Kazakhstani, and Ukrainian individuals and companies.Then-Vice President Biden met or spoke with nearly every one of the Biden family’s foreign business associates, including those from Ukraine, China, Russia, and Kazakhstan.

And of course let’s not forget Hunter Biden’s own deposition on Capitol Hill. This column noted in March that mere minutes after making yet another broad claim of not involving his father in the business, Hunter Biden confirmed the story of travelling with then-Vice President Joe Biden on Air Force Two to China and introducing his father to Jonathan Li in the lobby of the Bidens’ hotel. The following excerpt from the deposition suggests that the timing could not have been better:

[Committee member or staff]: At the time that you did introduce your father to Jonathan Li, did you or any of your business associates have any potential business with Jonathan Li?

[Hunter Biden]: I was working with Jonathan on a potential that he had an idea for creating a private equity fund based in China to do cross-border investments.

Nice. But good luck explaining what value Hunter Biden might be able to add to such an enterprise. Years later, his Chinese associates still hadn’t come up with a story. In 2019 Cissy Zhou and Jun Mai reported in the South China Morning Post:

BHR (Shanghai) Equity Investment Fund Management Company has grabbed global media attention for its links with Hunter Biden, the son of former United States vice-president Joe Biden, after US President Donald Trump fired a barrage of corruption allegations at him and requested China investigate the Bidens’ financial activities in the country.

The company has repeatedly declined to elaborate on the younger Biden’s role at the firm when contacted by the South China Morning Post via phone, mail and visits to the office. But Jonathan Li Xiangsheng, the firm’s chief executive and Hunter Biden’s partner, has said the company was working on an explanation about the American’s role.

Li refused to comment on the younger Biden when reached by the Post on Monday.

A recent visit to the firm’s registered address in Beijing found a small, plainly decorated office, where a receptionist said she had never seen Hunter Biden.

Is there anything Joe Biden said about the family business in 2020 that has turned out to be true?

Meanwhile as Vice President Kamala Harris seeks a promotion, perhaps she ought to disclose if she ever questioned anyone or learned anything about the Biden family business and its implications for American foreign policy. One would guess she was at least curious. Did she ever talk to anyone about the ethical standards for Hunter Biden’s art sales, which turned out to be a sham while she was serving alongside Joe Biden?

Vice President Harris is not just a lawyer but a former prosecutor and a former state attorney general, for goodness sake. Wasn’t she the least bit concerned?

***

Spokespeople for both the president and the vice president say that they won’t be pardoning Hunter Biden. But then why is Hunter Biden’s lawyer still making what seems like a political argument rather than a legal one?

Jack Morphet and Priscilla DeGregory report for the New York Post on comments from defense lawyer Abbe Lowell:

“Hunter decided to enter his plea to protect those he loves from unnecessary hurt and cruel humiliation,” Lowell said.

“This plea prevents that kind of show trial that would not have provided all the facts or served any real point in justice. He will now move on to the sentencing phase, while keeping open the options to raise the many clear issues with this case on appeal.”

He’s going to appeal a case in which he just pleaded guilty to all the charges? Sounds like an argument built for the White House briefing room, not a courtroom.

***

James Freeman is the co-author of “The Cost: Trump, China and American Revival” and also the co-author of “Borrowed Time: Two Centuries of Booms, Busts and Bailouts at Citi.”

[ehlihr]

ace attorney lawyer specialties if they werent in criminal law

phoenix - tort personal injury, plaintiff leaning

edgeworth - law of obligations. civil law

mia - also tort personal injury prolly, maybe family law

apollo - boutique family law or labour law

athena - IP since she has the science bg

kristoph - tort negligence / personal injury, large corp defense. mergers and acquisitions. real estate. tax. something lip curling. def an in house for a big corp whatever it is

klavier - international business ? maybe ? or IP? open to suggestions here idk — edit: IP law / entertainment law was such an easy grab idk why i didnt think of it before

Godot - tax law

franziska - definitely interntional business

sebastian - law student. doesnt really know what he wants to do rn

blackquill - tax law

[ratlesshonret]

Was thinking about Ace Attorney x Project Moon and wondering how that'd even work. The City seems like a very "fend for yourself," "might makes right" type of place. There are definitely laws, and jail-type locations are shown (mainly in Limbus Canto 6.5-1,) but we never see any kind of "due process." It usually just seems like people are arrested as soon as they're suspected of something, and thrown in jail forever unless they're rich.

We do come across some kinds of "lawyers," such as the Fixers you encounter in the Reception of Mirae Life Insurance, but those are insurance lawyers/collectors. Really, the only types of law ever covered are insurance law, contract law, and patent law. We never see anything about civil disputes or criminal law.

They take care to stress that laws don't apply during the Night in the Backstreets, when the Sweepers come out, which means that there are laws and punishments surrounding violent offenses, at least within the Nests, and possibly in the Backstreets outside of nighttime. Property damage is highlighted as an especially heinous offense, and if my memory serves right, the only offense that you can still be punished for during the Night in the Backstreets.

Overall, we get info on insurance, contract, and patent laws, but very little on criminal and civil law. Those last two seem to only be viewed in the lens of "you'll get punished by someone if you violate them" but it seems heavily dependent on which District you're in. A lot of Districts seem to just be "shoot the violators" while some, like T Corp, do seem to have an imprisonment system, at least for Time Tax Evaders. But we never see any due process.

I do think it'd be cool, though. Ace Attorney style trials in the high-tech City environment, allowing both interesting new tricks in the crimes, and cool new ways to investigate them. Maybe a Fixer Office specializing in defense law, who is hired to defend people accused of crimes in court, using expensive technology to investigate crimes in more detail when the actual police force of The City just doesn't feel like doing their job.

[amarynthian-chronicles]

Hello, hello!

Welcome, make yourself comfortable, here are some cakes, tea and hot chocolate, and enjoy your stay. In this little pocket dimension of a blog, you will mostly find posts about our Celestial Jesters and other FNAF content, along with space-themed aesthetic, writing, some silly whimsical quotes, comfy vibes and similar.

I shall be tagging my own writing posts under "jester's privilege chronicles" (these are especially for my longer works) and "amary's chronicles" (these are especially for my shorter little scenes), to make it easier to navigate or find them. For answered asks the tags are "amary answers" and "amary speaks", to find them easily in case they get buried in reblogs. As of recent, I made the tag "amary's art" for my doodles, although I am still a beginner.

Under the cut are links to my AO3 fics and summaries of the current ones, if you are interested!

Have a lovely day and enjoy your stay!

Jester's Privilege Chronicles series:

Sound the Bells: You are a mermaid in charge of the daunting task of managing the sea and your court consists of playful twin Leviathans and an uncooperative Kraken. You also have the disadvantage of being an utter disaster at this mermaid business and you live on land in human form, having the swimming skills of a rock.

Your sea monsters are not too thrilled with you living on land, so they love to cause shipwrecks and general mayhem to get your attention. You try to place a stop to this by having them spend a month with you in the town of Celestial Bay disguised as animatronics.

Sun is thrilled to explore human technology, Moon prowls the night threatening city council members into making better legal acts to protect the sea against pollution, and Eclipse's natural protective Kraken instincts are getting a tad bit out of hand and making him the friendly neighbourhood serial killer. He loves quick solutions to complex problems.

Officer Vanessa is the only one brave enough to keep knocking on your door for some explanations. She is also in charge of a very confused police unit that really needs to get some sleep.

Extended Contract: You are a witch that fell for the oldest trick in the book by giving your name to the mischievous Fae princes of the Celestial Court. Such an inconvenience on what was supposed to be a typical office night. You are honestly not having it. They, however, do seem quite happy about having you. You decide to make a deal with the Fae King to regain your freedom. The only thing that is functional in the whole situation is your phone signal in the Fae Kingdom.

Tip the Scales: You are a charismatic defense lawyer in a constant competition with two ruthless prosecutors that do not understand your ideals about criminals deserving a second chance. You are also housemates with a certain bitter and retired judge, who has a habit of operating at night as a cloaked figure known as the Judge of the Damned, serving justice as he deems fit according to his own moral ideals. In order to solve his frequent habit of going after your clients, you two had established a game of Tip the Scales to keep a balance of which person deserves redemption and who is condemned to damnation. Things get complicated when an old friend gets wrongfully accused. You do all in your power to convince your prosecutor rivals to secretly cooperate with you and help clear his name before you lose the game.

Our Guest: You arrive at a sinister and luxurious castle with the innocent intention of checking why its mysterious residents haven't been paying any taxes or utilities for the past several centuries. Very useful excuse for a vampire hunter to have when trying to do some good old infiltrating. The three vampire lords, however, fully intend to capture and seduce you, possibly give your pretty neck a bite or two, but all of that does get a bit complicated when you are being such a tease and constantly asking them about their financial books. Will they succeed in the task of making you theirs, dear Y/N? And are they onto your little schemes?

[zsakuva]

1. Is Kayson's hair natural or dyed? Does the sakuverse reflects realistic genetics or like fantasy genetics like the ones in anime where they could have any color of hair and eyes naturally?

2. If Isaac pushed through with his decision to be a lawyer, what field would he specialize in? Criminal defense? If he was, would he be picky about who he defends just as he is with his cases? Like would he defend a criminal that actually committed a crime?

3. If Isaac's family is still alive, what would they think of Isaac technically kidnapping Pickle? Isaac's mom would likely be proud that he helped someone, but what about his dad and grandpa?

4. We know Isaac pays Pickle about above minimum wage, but could you give us a range of how much he pays them per hour?

5. Very random but who among your characters peed their beds when they were little(aside from Elias)?

6. Does Pickle even do taxes? Ig their salary is probably paid in full by Isaac, but do they even need to pay taxes?

7. Before Isaac hired Pickle, how did he manage his time? Like since he's busy, would he just do chores while doing phone calls? And what kind of meals did he usually prepare for himself?

Kayson is an outlier seeing as when I made him as a character, there was no Sakuverse. So it's a 'we acknowledge it but we don't talk about it' with him. Unless I change it.

He'd likely go into criminal defence. But he wouldn't be picky about who we defends; his current job is ambiguous as well.

They would likely understand why he did it but wouldn't condone it.

It's per assignment, not hour. They can range depending on what it is. For one assignment, it could be $10,000. For another, $200,000.

Probably a lot, if not all. It happens~

Never thought about it.

He would do everything half-assed. Wipe something with a cloth here and there, and then forget to do the rest. For meals, it would be very simple, probably very microwaveable meals or things that can be heated up with little effort.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

#20yrsago Itunes blocks you from sharing music with YOURSELF, on your own computer https://web.archive.org/web/20041009202513/http://www.raelity.org/computers/operating_systems/apple/mac_os_x/apps/itunes_single_instance.html

#20yrsago How fanfic makes kids into better writers (and copyright victims) https://www.technologyreview.com/2004/02/06/40304/why-heather-can-write/

#15yrsago Flashmob of ATM crooks scores $9 million in 49 cities https://web.archive.org/web/20090205214559/http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/090202_FBI_Investigates_9_Million_ATM_Scam

#15yrsago Internet not full of pedos, the statistical edition https://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2009/02/06/doing_the_math.html

#10yrsago Turks bid farewell to the Internet in the face of brutal censorship/surveillance law https://medium.com/@ahmetasabanci/saying-goodbye-to-internet-in-turkey-33d805b98f6c

#10yrsago Middle class brands collapse, 1% brands thrive https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/03/business/the-middle-class-is-steadily-eroding-just-ask-the-business-world.html

#10yrsago How UK spies committed illegal DoS attacks against Anonymous https://www.nbcnews.com/news/investigations/war-anonymous-british-spies-attacked-hackers-snowden-docs-show-n21361

#10yrsago Toronto’s reference library gets a makerspace https://web.archive.org/web/20140209061223/http://torontoist.com/2014/02/reference-library-unveils-3d-printers-is-cooler-than-indigo/

#10yrsago Toxic Avenger’s brilliant rant about the importance of Net Neutrality https://www.techdirt.com/2014/02/05/innovation-our-better-future-depend-preserving-net-neutrality/

#5yrsago One of pharma’s most notorious gougers is going bankrupt, but 2019 is a banner year for shkreli-grade pharmaceutical price-hikes https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/02/infamous-pharma-company-declares-bankruptcy-after-3900-price-hike/

#5yrsago Chasing down that list of potential Predpol customers reveals dozens of cities that have secretly experimented with “predictive policing” https://www.vice.com/en/article/d3m7jq/dozens-of-cities-have-secretly-experimented-with-predictive-policing-software

#5yrsago Amazon is using purchase data to sell targeted ads, which is creepy, but not because they’ve invented a mind-control ray https://memex.craphound.com/2019/02/06/amazon-is-using-purchase-data-to-sell-targeted-ads-which-is-creepy-but-not-because-theyve-invented-a-mind-control-ray/

#5yrsago The next Firefox will block all autoplayed audio, video https://hacks.mozilla.org/2019/02/firefox-66-to-block-automatically-playing-audible-video-and-audio/

#5yrsago RIP, author Carol Emshwiller https://locusmag.com/2019/02/carol-emshwiller-1921-2019/

#5yrsago Washington State sheriff used courtroom camera to zoom in on defense attorney and juror’s private notes https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/san-juan-sheriffs-use-of-courtroom-camera-to-view-jurors-notebook-lawyers-notes-sparks-outrage-and-dismissal-of-criminal-case/

#5yrsago Lawsuit says that America’s “break even” court records website shouldn’t be making 98%+ profits https://www.techdirt.com/2019/02/06/multiple-parties-including-author-law-governing-pacer-ask-court-to-stop-pacers-screwing-taxpayers/

#5yrsago Fox News blames schools teaching “fairness” for support for a tax on the super-rich https://www.reddit.com/r/LateStageCapitalism/comments/annfs6/fox_news_blames_public_support_of_wealth_tax/

#1yrago Bruce Schneier's "A Hacker's Mind" https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/06/trickster-makes-the-world/#power-play

[beardedmrbean]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Weeks before Hunter Biden is set to stand trial on federal tax charges, the legal team for President Joe Biden's son and prosecutors will appear in a California courtroom Wednesday as the judge weighs what evidence can be presented to the jury.

Hunter Biden is accused of a scheme to avoid paying at least $1.4 million in taxes in the case headed for trial in September in Los Angeles. It's the second criminal trial in just months for the president's son, who was convicted in June of three felony charges in a separate federal case over the purchase of a gun in 2018.

Prosecutors and the defense have been fighting for weeks in court papers over what evidence and testimony jurors should be allowed to hear. Among the topics at issue is evidence related to Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings, which have been at the center of Republican investigations into the Democratic president's family.

Prosecutors say they will introduce evidence of Hunter Biden's business dealings with a Chinese energy conglomerate, as well as money he made for serving on the board of Ukrainian gas company Burisma. Prosecutors say the evidence will show Hunter Biden “performed almost no work in exchange for the millions of dollars he received from these entities.”

Special counsel David Weiss' team also plans to tell jurors about Hunter Biden's work for a Romanian businessman, who prosecutors say sought to “influence U.S. government policy” while Joe Biden was vice president.

Prosecutors want to call as a witness a Hunter Biden business associate to testify about the arrangement with the Romanian businessman, Gabriel Popoviciu, who was seeking help from U.S. government agencies to end a criminal investigation he was facing in his home country, according to prosecutors.

Hunter Biden and his business associate were concerned their “lobbying work might cause political ramifications” for Joe Biden, so the arrangement was structured in a way that “concealed the true nature of the work” for Popoviciu, prosecutors allege. Prosecutors say Hunter and two business associates split more than $3 million from Popoviciu.

The defense has said evidence about his foreign business dealings is irrelevant to the tax charges and would only confuse jurors. They have accused prosecutors of inappropriately trying to insert “extraneous, politically-charged matters" into the trial.

Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty, and his lawyers have indicated they will argue he didn't act “willfully,” or with the intention to break the law. Pointing to Hunter Biden’s well-documented addiction struggles during those years, they've argued his drug and alcohol abuse impacted “his decision-making and judgment, such that Mr. Biden was unable to form the requisite intent to commit the crimes he has been charged with.”

Prosecutors have said that while avoiding his taxes, Hunter Biden was living an “extravagant lifestyle,” spending money on things like drugs, escorts, exotic cars and luxury hotels. The defense is urging the judge to keep those salacious allegations out of the trial.

“The Special Counsel may wish to introduce such evidence for the very reason that it is salacious and would pique the interest of the jury, but for the same reasons and because such evidence would distract the jury from the crimes charged, such information would also be highly prejudicial to Mr. Biden,” defense lawyers wrote in court papers.

Hunter Biden was supposed to plead guilty last year to misdemeanor tax offenses in a deal with prosecutors that would have allowed him to avoid prosecution in the gun case if he stayed out of trouble. But the plea deal fell apart after a Delaware federal judge raised concerns about it, and he was subsequently indicted in the two cases.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Donald Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud in an indictment from a Manhattan grand jury, according to two sources familiar with the case -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.

Trump is expected to appear in court on Tuesday.

The indictment has been filed under seal and will be announced in the coming days. The charges are not publicly known at this time.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office has been investigating the former president in connection with his alleged role in a hush money payment scheme and cover-up involving adult film star Stormy Daniels that dates to the 2016 presidential election. Grand jury proceedings are secret, but a source familiar with the case told CNN that a witness gave about 30 minutes of testimony before it voted to indict Trump.

The decision is sure to send shockwaves across the country, pushing the American political system -- which has never seen one of its ex-leaders confronted with criminal charges, let alone while running again for president -- into uncharted waters.

Trump released a statement in response to the indictment claiming it was "Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history."

"I believe this Witch-Hunt will backfire massively on Joe Biden," the former president said. "The American people realize exactly what the Radical Left Democrats are doing here. Everyone can see it. So our Movement, and our Party -- united and strong -- will first defeat Alvin Bragg, and then we will defeat Joe Biden, and we are going to throw every last one of these Crooked Democrats out of office so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"

Trump was caught off guard by the grand jury's decision to indict him, according to a person who spoke directly with him. While the former president was bracing for an indictment last week, he began to believe news reports that a potential indictment was weeks -- or more -- away.

"Is this a shock today? Hell yes," the person said, speaking on a condition of anonymity as Trump's team calculated its response.

Bragg's office said it is in touch with Trump's lawyers.

"This evening we contacted Mr. Trump's attorney to coordinate his surrender to the Manhattan D.A.'s Office for arraignment on a Supreme Court indictment, which remains under seal," the district attorney's office said in a statement Thursday. "Guidance will be provided when the arraignment date is selected."

The legal action against Trump jolts the 2024 presidential campaign into a new phase, as the former president has vowed to keep running in the face of criminal charges.

Trump has frequently called the various investigations surrounding him a "witch hunt," attempting to sway public opinion on them by casting himself as a victim of what he's claimed are political probes led by Democratic prosecutors. As the indictment reportedly neared, Trump urged his supporters to protest his arrest, echoing his calls to action following the 2020 election as he tried to overturn his loss to President Joe Biden.

Trump has long avoided legal consequences in his personal, professional and political lives. He has settled a number of private civil lawsuits through the years and paid his way out of disputes concerning the Trump Organization, his namesake company. As president, he was twice impeached by the Democratic-led House, but avoided conviction by the Senate.

In December, the Trump Organization was convicted on multiple charges of tax fraud, though Trump himself was not charged in that case.

Trump's Republican allies -- as well as his 2024 GOP rivals -- have condemned the Manhattan district attorney's office over the looming indictment, and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has vowed to launch an investigation into the matter.

GOP RALLIES TO TRUMP'S DEFENSE

Congressional Republicans quickly rallied to Trump's defense, attacking Bragg on Twitter and accusing the district attorney of a political witch hunt.

"Outrageous," tweeted House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan of Ohio, one of the Republican committee chairmen who has demanded Bragg testify before Congress about the Trump investigation.

Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, called the indictment "completely unprecedented" and said it is "a catastrophic escalation in the weaponization of the justice system."

But at least one moderate Republican told CNN he trusted the legal system.

"I believe in the rule of law. I think we have checks and balances and I trust the system," said Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska.

"We have a judge. We have jurors. There is appeals. So I think in the end, justice will be done. If he's guilty it will show up. But if not, I think that will be shown too," Bacon told CNN.

INVESTIGATION BEGAN UNDER CY VANCE

Bragg's office had signaled as recently as early March that they were close to bringing charges against Trump after they invited the ex-president to testify before the grand jury probing the hush money scheme. Potential defendants in New York are required by law to be notified and invited to appear before a grand jury weighing charges. But Trump ultimately declined to appear before the panel.

The long-running investigation first began under Bragg's predecessor, Cy Vance, when Trump was in office. It relates to a $130,000 payment made by Trump's then-personal attorney Michael Cohen to Daniels in late October 2016, days before the 2016 presidential election, to silence her from going public about an alleged affair with Trump a decade earlier. Trump has denied the affair.

At issue in the investigation is the payment made to Daniels and the Trump Organization's reimbursement to Cohen.

According to court filings in Cohen's own federal prosecution, Trump Organization executives authorized payments to him totaling $420,000 to cover his original $130,000 payment and tax liabilities and reward him with a bonus. The Trump Organization noted the reimbursements as a legal expense in its internal books. Trump has denied knowledge of the payment.

[vapor-vine]

Thinking it’s kinda funny that Floyd and Riddle mushed together makes a word in the dictionary. Florid.

Anyways Florid thoughts and HCs, mostly future stuff

In the forms of the ship I’ve seen, it’s always Floyd who falls for Riddle first. It makes sense, considering how he seeks Riddle out without Riddle doing the same to him. The scenario of Riddle taking romantic interest first would be interesting, just kinda hard (or you have to set up a lot) to pull off convincingly in my opinion.

It’s very fun to think of the development of the relationship as a sort of push and pull from both parties. They take a step forward, only to fall back because of a comment or action. Only until they come to more of an understanding of each other that they pull more than push.

I know from the times I see Riddle in casual wear he’s dressed fancily while Floyd is more lax (aloha shirt Floyd is ever present, especially for future AU). But c’mon, Floyd is interested in fashion, he’ll happily experiment and help Riddle do too. Let’s go try stuff out Goldfishie~

Someone (or both of them) DEFINITELY has to go through character development if they become a couple long-term. Otherwise they would tear each other apart and become a shitshow.

Floyd feels like the type to just wrap his arms around someone (shoulders, waist, whatever’s more comfortable) and poke over their shoulder to look at what they’re doing. Riddle likes the physical contact, but takes some issue with it if Floyd braces his entire weight on him.

For future AU, as much as I hate drawing that sort of style, Floyd strikes me as someone who has his hair slicked back. Riddle…hmm. I can see his side-bang being tucked back like his suitor outfit, but I prefer him growing his hair out long enough to make a braid or bun (think Artori/a from Fate or Violet from Violet E/vergarden). Either way, they brush and do each other’s hair on occasion.

Speaking of which, the future AU I share with my besties, Riddle is an advising lawyer (not sure which category, but if I remember correctly I was leaning toward criminal defense) while Floyd is mostly a househusband (super funny to think about) who occasionally takes jobs from Jade for the Leech business. Floyd calls it commission work (which is how they file it in taxes) and Riddle takes a deep sigh.

Like to think that they live on the coast in the Queendom in the future. Beachy.

I have NO IDEA if the horses in equestrian club belong to NRC, but fuck it we ball. Vorpal come here, let’s rent a stall in a nice barn for you that we can visit. Not surprised if Florid ends up with a lot of pets in their care, they would probably keep hedgehogs.

Riddle has a Ebenezer Scrouge nightgown he goes to bed in. That or pajama sets. Snork, mimimimi. Floyd dresses in whatever the fuck to sleep. Either way Floyd is either squeezing Riddle like a teddy bear or taking up the entire bed.

I like to think that it’s traditional wear for young girls in the Queendom is wear dresses similar to the iconic Alice dress. If Florid has daughters, Riddle is going to put them in those dresses (it’s nostalgic for him to see when combined with the trans HC).

Floyd would for sure do that thing where you toss kids up in the air to catch them. Riddle isn’t too pleased if he goes too high.

If they get a big bed with space underneath the frame, definitely feel like if they have kids those kids will squeeze under there themselves. Eels like dark, small spaces, just look at how they’ll pile up in a tube or pipe. Grabs a dad’s ankle, the little gremlins.

[longwindedbore]

When i’ve bought or sold a home the mortgage companies have always looked at three documents:

A. The appraisal,

B. The seller’s disclosure statement,

C. The buyer’s statement of financial condition

Any factual misstatements or material omissions on B or C can result in a conviction for fraud for the signee(s)

https://www.federalcriminaldefenseadvocates.com/mortgage-fraud

[From the Article]

Some common types of mortgage fraud are: [I’ve added the numbering]

Intentionally providing false financial statements;

lying about income (income fraud);

providing false tax returns;

overvaluing a property's value (appraisal fraud);

providing fake employment verification;

manipulated credit scores/reports;

stating that the property acquired is for residential purposes but in actuality is for investment purposes which gives lower interest rates (occupancy fraud)…

In United States federal courts, mortgage fraud is prosecuted as wire fraud, real estate fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud and money laundering, and you may face a maximum of 30 years in prison and up to a $1 million fine.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Donald Trump, his sons, his companies and other of his executives have been found liable for fraud in the on going civil trial.

Just as you or I would be if we did ANY of the above.

The State had demonstrated that the Trump Organization committed repeatedly 1, 2, 4, 6, 7 plus others not listed above

Judge Engoron’s ruling on the State’s Motion for Summary Judgment noted that the State compared documents in the Trump Organizations records which at odds with the Statements of Financial Conditions subpoenaed from banks which had provided Trump loans.

Donald Trump’s attorneys filed three motions against the State; were rejected three times by the Judge; then appealed three times and were rejected three times.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Lead attorney Kise has argued before the US Supreme Court and won his cases

If he had any any any other legal arguments howler specious or nebulous for an appeals court he would have made that appeal before the train wreck of testimony by Trump and Sons.

Undoubtedly Trump, who considered himself smarter than the Judge, opposing counsel, and his own $3million retainer attorney, paid close to ZERO attention to Kise’s attempt to prep him as a witness.

[coffeebleeds]

The law might be slow and not always fair most of the time, but u hurt a tree and you’re facing the power of Tree Law. This just makes me think Alfred really likes trees. The IRS works hard, but tree law works harder

//There are a few areas of law that the US just goes particularly hard on and it's never the areas you would expect. Tree law is a meme-worthy example, but a few of my personal favorites include:

Mail Fraud

Social Security Fraud

Tax Fraud

Constructive Eviction

Ground Support Rights

Employment Discrimination

The first three are the agencies who no one really expects to do much, but who whack people witch big fines and jail time well after all the evidence has been gathered. By the time the postal service catches you, you might as well confess.

The other three are much more in the vein of tree law. Constructive eviction is a favorite in my state in particular because it's the best hammer we have against shitty landlords. My state authorizes a tenant who is locked out of their apartment to get three months of rent as a penalty from the landlord. The one time my firm got a constructive eviction case (they are rare because the deterrence is strong), I swear I saw some of attorneys start salivating. We love cases where we can slam landlords into the dirt. Big fans. Ground support is similar in that you can get a huge amount of money if someone's excavation causes your land to collapse.

All lawyers have their Thing. Mine just happens to be employment, divorce, and landlord-tenant. My roommate loves criminal defense. Our friend group now consists of a public defender, a divorce attorney, a patent lawyer, a bankruptcy clerk, a tax attorney, and an estate planner. We all love very different areas of law.

But we all love Tree Law.

[simply-ivanka]

Let's not forget that Joe Biden is corrupt to the core! this gets forgotten in the cesspool of mainstream media and the thirst for breaking news! The sooner America rids itself of Biden and the members of the Biden Administration, the better!

______________________________________________________________

What Did the Biden Family’s Foreign Clients Get for their Money?

Hunter Biden pleads guilty to federal tax charges.

Wall Street Journal

By James Freeman

Hunter Biden has been convicted of federal crimes for not paying all the taxes he owed on his foreign income. But the most important question for Americans remains unanswered: What exactly did his overseas clients get in return for their money? His Thursday guilty plea on tax charges prevented testimony that may have gone some way toward providing an answer. This potential testimony may also explain why Hunter Biden waited until now to acknowledge his guilt.

The Journal’s Sara Randazzo, Ryan Barber and Annie Linskey report from Los Angeles:

Federal prosecutors signaled an aggressive strategy as the trial drew near, previewing an approach that would show how foreign interests paid the younger Biden to influence the U.S. government while his father was vice president during the Obama administration. Prosecutors said they planned to cast a light on a lucrative arrangement with a Romanian real-estate magnate who was facing a corruption investigation in his home country, along with his ties to the oil company CEFC China Energy and his tenure on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian gas company.

In court Thursday, [prosecutor Leo Wise] insisted on reading the entirety of the 56-page indictment into the record—over the objection of Biden’s lawyer—to establish the facts underlying the guilty plea.

Alanna Durkin Richer reported last month for the Associated Press:

Hunter Biden’s lawyers say prosecutors are inappropriately trying to insert “politically-charged” allegations about his foreign business dealings into the upcoming federal tax trial against the president’s son.

Special counsel David Weiss’ team told the judge last week that they plan to call to the witness stand a business associate of Hunter Biden’s to testify about an arrangement with a Romanian businessman who was trying to “influence U.S. government policy” during Joe Biden’s term as vice president…

The Romanian businessman, Gabriel Popoviciu, wanted U.S. government agencies to probe a bribery investigation he was facing in his home country in the hopes that would end his legal trouble, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors say Hunter Biden agreed with his business associate to help Popoviciu fight the criminal charges against him. But prosecutors say they were concerned that “lobbying work might cause political ramifications” for Joe Biden, so the arrangement was structured in a way that “concealed the true nature of the work” for Popoviciu, prosecutors alleged…

In fact, Popoviciu and Hunter’s business associate agreed that they would be paid for their work to “attempt to influence U.S. government agencies to investigate the Romanian investigation,” prosecutors said. Hunter Biden’s business associate was paid more than $3 million, which was split with Hunter and another business partner, prosecutors say.

Ms. Richer also noted that Hunter Biden’s defense lawyers “slammed prosecutors for showcasing ‘these matters on the eve of Mr. Biden’s trial—when there is no mention of political influence in the 56-page Indictment.’ ” The A.P. story continued:

“The Special Counsel’s unnecessary change of tactic merely echoes the baseless and false allegations of foreign wrongdoing which have been touted by House Republicans to use Mr. Biden’s proper business activities in Romania and elsewhere to attack him and his father,” the defense wrote.

But the defense has now opted not to defend.

Of course Romania is not the only foreign jurisdiction that proved fruitful for the Biden family business. The majority staff of several House committees recently reported:

From 2014 to the present… Biden family members and their associates received over $27 million from foreign individuals or entities…

Witnesses acknowledged that Hunter Biden involved Vice President Biden in many of his business dealings with Russian, Romanian, Chinese, Kazakhstani, and Ukrainian individuals and companies.Then-Vice President Biden met or spoke with nearly every one of the Biden family’s foreign business associates, including those from Ukraine, China, Russia, and Kazakhstan.

And of course let’s not forget Hunter Biden’s own deposition on Capitol Hill. This column noted in March that mere minutes after making yet another broad claim of not involving his father in the business, Hunter Biden confirmed the story of travelling with then-Vice President Joe Biden on Air Force Two to China and introducing his father to Jonathan Li in the lobby of the Bidens’ hotel. The following excerpt from the deposition suggests that the timing could not have been better:

[Committee member or staff]: At the time that you did introduce your father to Jonathan Li, did you or any of your business associates have any potential business with Jonathan Li?

[Hunter Biden]: I was working with Jonathan on a potential that he had an idea for creating a private equity fund based in China to do cross-border investments.

Nice. But good luck explaining what value Hunter Biden might be able to add to such an enterprise. Years later, his Chinese associates still hadn’t come up with a story. In 2019 Cissy Zhou and Jun Mai reported in the South China Morning Post:

BHR (Shanghai) Equity Investment Fund Management Company has grabbed global media attention for its links with Hunter Biden, the son of former United States vice-president Joe Biden, after US President Donald Trump fired a barrage of corruption allegations at him and requested China investigate the Bidens’ financial activities in the country.

The company has repeatedly declined to elaborate on the younger Biden’s role at the firm when contacted by the South China Morning Post via phone, mail and visits to the office. But Jonathan Li Xiangsheng, the firm’s chief executive and Hunter Biden’s partner, has said the company was working on an explanation about the American’s role.

Li refused to comment on the younger Biden when reached by the Post on Monday.

A recent visit to the firm’s registered address in Beijing found a small, plainly decorated office, where a receptionist said she had never seen Hunter Biden.

Is there anything Joe Biden said about the family business in 2020 that has turned out to be true?

Meanwhile as Vice President Kamala Harris seeks a promotion, perhaps she ought to disclose if she ever questioned anyone or learned anything about the Biden family business and its implications for American foreign policy. One would guess she was at least curious. Did she ever talk to anyone about the ethical standards for Hunter Biden’s art sales, which turned out to be a sham while she was serving alongside Joe Biden?

Vice President Harris is not just a lawyer but a former prosecutor and a former state attorney general, for goodness sake. Wasn’t she the least bit concerned?

***

Spokespeople for both the president and the vice president say that they won’t be pardoning Hunter Biden. But then why is Hunter Biden’s lawyer still making what seems like a political argument rather than a legal one?

Jack Morphet and Priscilla DeGregory report for the New York Post on comments from defense lawyer Abbe Lowell:

“Hunter decided to enter his plea to protect those he loves from unnecessary hurt and cruel humiliation,” Lowell said.

“This plea prevents that kind of show trial that would not have provided all the facts or served any real point in justice. He will now move on to the sentencing phase, while keeping open the options to raise the many clear issues with this case on appeal.”

He’s going to appeal a case in which he just pleaded guilty to all the charges? Sounds like an argument built for the White House briefing room, not a courtroom.

***

James Freeman is the co-author of “The Cost: Trump, China and American Revival” and also the co-author of “Borrowed Time: Two Centuries of Booms, Busts and Bailouts at Citi.”