Justice Department seized senator's phone over 'well-timed stock sales'

[Eugene]

Source: Los Angeles Times

Justice Department seized senator's phone over 'well-timed stock sales'

Sarah D. Wire
Tue, September 6, 2022 at 7:06 PM

The Justice Department launched a criminal insider-trading and securities fraud investigation of Sen. Richard M. Burr (R-N.C.) over what the FBI called “well-timed stock sales” at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, according to a partially redacted warrant released Monday evening.

The Los Angeles Times successfully sued for access to the warrant under the Freedom of Information Act, then fought the extensive redactions made by the department.

In late August, Chief U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell ordered the Justice Department to file a new version of the warrant with fewer redactions and additional information on what evidence it relied on to seek the warrant but accepted the department’s request to keep certain third-party witness information and law enforcement techniques under seal.

"We're pleased to see that these less-redacted filings provide the public with additional insight into the government's investigation. While some redactions remain, the public now has a much clearer picture of the government's basis for executing a warrant for Sen. Burr's cellphone," said Katie Townsend, an attorney for The Times who works for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.

-snip-

Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/justice-department-seized-senators-phone-230658345.html

[Baitball Blogger]

1. God, these things take so long.

[cbabe]

6. Guaranteed employment for lawyers, investigators, et al.

[msfiddlestix]

15. Right? So, why is that, do you think? It's a freaking head scratcher to me.

[jaxexpat]

19. It's a "tell" for felons. Like a get-out-of-jail-free card written on the deed to Boardwalk.

Felons can "tell" they've made it to the 0.0001% when they can wield enough "attorney power" to delay and defer and appeal their convictions into perpetuity. "Attorney Power" is a superpower for which there is no known kryptonite. In its current iteration it is a much-lauded improvement from those hardscrabble pioneer days when, due to the inconvenience of 'conviction', Lucky Luciano had to run his business from a penthouse in the Clinton Correctional Facility.

[msfiddlestix]

22. ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️

I had no idea. This backdrop explains a lot of very mystifying cases.

[TheRealNorth]

2. Of course they were doing insider trades...

While they were telling the American people Covid was no big deal, they were selling off companies likely to suffer from a pandemic while buying companies they thought would benefit.

[Botany]

3. Isn't he running this fall?

n/t

[dweller]

7. No

n/t



✌🏻

[2naSalit]

8. No but...

He'll be campaigning for his personal freedom very soon me thinks.

[Botany]

12. Making money off of insider information about the coming pandemic helped Kelly Loeffler lose her ...

... job in the US Senate from Georgia. She sold some stock and then bought Net Flicks & Body Bag businesses
stocks after going to a private senators only meeting about C-19.

[yankee87]

4. Insider trading

I guess the best that can be said is he didn’t sell nuclear secrets like his messiah. Are there any Qpublicans who aren’t crooks?

[2naSalit]

9. Nope.

I can't name them, too many, but you can take that supposition to the bank. Not a one of them is a law abiding citizen and they're proud of it.

[zuul]

5. Finally! Now get the rest of them.

[dlk]

10. The courts are underfunded and understaffed

n/t

[Lonestarblue]

11. While Democrats certainly aren't perfect, Republicans seem to have bought into corruption.

The DOJ is understaffed if it takes this long to investigate.

[Ford_Prefect]

13. Dick Burr was scum in high school and has remained true to that faith ever since.

My father used to say he regretted marrying Burr's parents, who are rather nice people and never deserved the prick they got for a son.

[Midnight Writer]

14. An old-fashioned Republican.

From the good old days when Republicans were corrupt, but they weren't insane.

[Traildogbob]

18. North Carolina

Burr, Tillis, Cawthorn, Meadows……..All puppets of our own version of the Kochs, Art Pope.
The best democracy money can buy. We have so many Florida second and third homes up here, I think the DeSatan, Gaetz, Rubio and Cannon style corruption cancer has sank deep into our bone marrow.
And we have massive amounts of very poorly educated people to suck all the bullshit up, from Fox and Sinclair, backed by guns and the BuyBull. We are so dumb we almost put Eric Trump’s idiot wife into office, still possible.

[KPN]

16. Didn't the Justice department drop the investigation into Burr? What's up with that? Why?

Was it just before tfg left office? Is DOJ resurrecting the case?

[barbtries]

17. when i read the title

i was just hoping it was Burr they were talking about.

i hate republicans. i hope he does time.

[Warpy]

20. Let's hope they find enough to charge and convict the old bastard

Burr is a stone cold wingnut and he's poisoned the senate long enough. I doubt NC will do much better and they have done worse, but at least there is a chance.

Insider trading is common in Congress, it's why they all get rich when they're in office for a few terms.

Well, except Biden, who was ethical.

[machoneman]

21. Wow a Senator no less! Woo-hoo the good guys snared another cheatin' R. Lock him up.

[choie]

23. DAMN!

This has received hardly a whimper from the media.

[progressoid]

24. He deserves finger wagging and possibly a stern letter.