A report released Tuesday by the California attorney general details the history of abuse that permeated a small police department near Los Angeles. The report states that the Maywood Police Department was rife with sexual innuendo, racial profiling, and violence against suspects. One account alleges that officers Tasered a handcuffed man and his father while beating another man in the same room. AG Jerry Brown said the state would work to reform the department because “when you have rogue cops, it’s just intolerable in a free society.” (AP)
A former FBI informant confirmed this week that that the bureau asked him to pose as a Muslim convert to investigate potential terrorist connections within Mosque social circles. Craig Monteilh says he lured congregants to a local gym so that the FBI could confirm their identity with security cameras. After conducting background checks, says Monteilh, the FBI would pressure the congregants to become informants against other community members. Monteilh has filed a legal claim against the FBI for breaking promises to pay him $100,000 and place him in the witness protection program after the bureau stopped using him as an informant in 2007. Last week, a group of Muslim organizations asked the Obama administration to review whether the FBI conducted racial profiling, saying the bureau’s conduct “reflects a deeply rooted mind-set that was promoted by the Bush administration.” (LA Times)
A former Deputy U.S. Marshal was convicted Tuesday of leaking the information of an informant participating in the Illinois witness protection program. Lawyers for John Ambrose said that he would appeal the ruling that he stole information related to Nicholas Calabrese, a key witness in Chicago’s 2007 “Family Secrets” trial targeting top mob officials, and gave the information to John “No Nose” DiFronzo, a reported mob boss. Ambrose is the first person in history to be convicted of leaking information related to the witness protection program, a crime which another U.S. attorney called “an unforgivable sin.” (Chicago Tribune)
The Senate Banking Committee delayed a vote on one of President Obama’s key housing nominees amid allegations that his company broke the law by controlling relationships between real estate agents, companies and mortgage lenders. David Stevens, president and chief operating officer of Long & Foster nominated for the Assistant Secretary for Federal Housing post, is not listed as a defendant in the set of class action lawsuits against the real estate company, said a spokesperson for the department of Housing and Urban Development. But a Baltimore-area lawyer responsible for four of the class action lawsuits said that as president of the company, “he just doesn’t have a good track record on this.” (AP)
Marc Dreier will plead guilty next month to his alleged scheme to sell $700 million in fake promissory notes through his law firm, his lawyer said Monday. According to the indictment against Dreier, he stole more than $400 million from investors and clients between 2004 and 2008. For pleading guilty to all counts of wire fraud, conspiracy, securities fraud and money laundering, Dreier could face 30 years in prison. (Wall Street Journal)
In a report released Tuesday, an Illinois panel called for wide-ranging political changes to address the state’s prevalent culture of corruption, most notably epitomized by the scandal of former governor Rod Blagojevich. In the 88-page report, the Illinois Reform Commission called for term limits for statewide leadership positions, limits on campaign contributions, and the standardization of process for granting state contracts. The New York Times reports that implementing the suggested changes will be the hard part, as lawmakers will have to agree to changes in how they conduct business, and begin to remove self-interest from legislative redistricting. (New York Times)
