Petters returning to court, seeks less prison time
Legal World
Convicted Minnesota businessman Tom Petters returns to federal court this week to try to shorten his 50-year prison term.
The attempt to get 20 years removed might be Petters' last chance to go after a lighter sentence for a $3.65 billion Ponzi scheme, the Star Tribune reported. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court have already rejected his attempts to set aside his 2009 conviction and/or cut his prison term.
Petters, now 56, is to take the stand Wednesday in a courtroom in St. Paul. The main witnesses against him at the hearing will be the attorneys who defended him during his jury trial in 2009.
STORY: China's Bo Xilai, Still Defiant, Sentenced to Life in Prison
He was convicted on 20 counts of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering. He's serving his sentence in the federal prison at Leavenworth, Kansas.
At the heart of the hearing is whether federal prosecutors offered Petters a plea deal with a sentence capped at 30 years, whether Petters' attorneys relayed that offer to him, and whether he had an opportunity to accept it.
His defense team says a 30-year plea deal was discussed with Petters multiple times and that he rejected it on each occasion.
Related listings
-
Gov. Rick Scott seeks Supreme Court review of worker drug test
Legal World 09/23/2013Gov. Rick Scott intends to take his fight for random drug tests of tens of thousands of state employees all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, a lawyer for the Republican governor told a federal judge Thursday. But Charles Trippe, who was previously ...
-
Court asked to uphold BP settlement approval
Legal World 09/09/2013Plaintiffs' attorneys who brokered a multibillion-dollar settlement with BP following the company's 2010 Gulf oil spill have asked a federal appeals court to uphold a judge's approval of the deal. Only a "paltry few objectors" have raised the "narrow...
-
Court sides with Yahoo in data collection case
Legal World 07/18/2013Yahoo has won a court fight that could help the public learn more about the government's efforts to obtain data from Internet users. The U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which reviews government requests to spy on individuals, ruled Mond...
New York Commercial Litigation Law Firm - Woods Lonergan PLLC
Founded in 1993 by Managing Partner James F. Woods, Woods Lonergan PLLC has built a strong reputation as a resourceful and industrious firm that provides clients with clear, concise, and straightforward answers to their most challenging legal issues. Partner Lawrence R. Lonergan, who joined the firm in 2008, has been a friend and colleague to Mr. Woods for over 40 years and shares the same business philosophy. Woods Lonergan PLLC’s collective experience and expertise enables the firm to expeditiously and effectively analyze the increasing challenges clients face in an evolving business and legal world, in many instances, avoiding unnecessary time and expense to our clients. Our mission is simple: provide cutting-edge expertise and sound advice in select areas of the law for corporate and business clients. We thrive on providing each client with personalized attention, forceful representation, and a collaborative team effort that embraces collective knowledge.