Banks Are Now Pleading Guilty to Crimes. So Why Aren't They Being Punished Like Criminals?

[Agschmid]

[center][/center]

Not so long ago, federal prosecutors were simply terrified by the idea of what might happen if they ever brought criminal charges against a major bank. They worried that the consequences of a felony conviction might cause a large financial institution to collapse and wreak havoc on Wall Street, much as the accounting firm Arthur Andersen went bust after it was convicted for its role in the Enron scandal.

So the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission landed on a compromise. When bankers got caught doing something illegal, the government asked them to pay a hefty fine and sign a "deferred prosecution agreement," in which they promised to mend their behavior forever more. The government lawyers got to trumpet billion-dollar penalties. The banks got to go back to their businesses without much longterm damage. For everyone else, it was pretty clear Wall Street had simply gotten "too big to jail."

Lately, the government's lawyers have gotten a little braver. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced Wednesday that four of the world's largest banks had pleaded guilty to criminal charges that their traders had conspired to fix the massive and poorly regulated foreign exchange market. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland all admitted to being felons. Meanwhile, Switzerland's UBS, pleaded guilty to manipulating the benchmark Libor interbank lending rate. The five banks are ponying up $5.6 billion in fines.

But that's basically the extent of the punishment. As the New York Times reports:

For the banks, though, life as a felon is likely to carry more symbolic shame than practical problems. Although they could be technically barred by American regulators from managing mutual funds or corporate pension plans or perform certain other securities activities, the banks have obtained waivers from the Securities and Exchange Commission that will allow them to conduct business as usual. In fact, the cases were not announced until after the S.E.C. had time to act.

So, federal prosecutors are now confident they can bring criminal charges against major banks without ushering in a financial catastrophe, as long as they water down the consequences. Is this progress?

Source.

[fredamae]

1. They have "More Zero's" than the rest of us? n/t

[Agschmid]

2. I may try a life of crime, it does appear to pay...

sometimes.

[fredamae]

6. heh..just wait long enuf

congress is working on making the act of "being human" illegal on so many levels

[jwirr]

18. First you have to become a corporate human.

[Agschmid]

19. Consider my LLC filed.

[1StrongBlackMan]

3. Because ...

legal fictions can't be jailed? But they can be fined ... even out of existence.

[randys1]

5. We have allowed this to happen because our entire system is rotten to the core.

I think some of them try, I think Obama tried here and there, more than most.

I think it does not matter who you are, even if you are the first Black Aty Gnl, dont mean you are also the first Aty Gnl not to be corrupted by the system, they all are.

Not their fault really, it is OURS

We allow the core to get more and more rotten by 50% or more of us refusing to even bother to vote, or we vote but then we sit out the midterms.

Obama did what he could given the cards he was dealt, now it us up to us to make it better and better.

WE are to blame

[Munificence]

22. Yeah

"We" are part of the problem....bullshit. You lay blame on everyone besides for President Obama. He is right in the thick of it and is not doing shit about it. Don't think he is, then let's look at his balance sheet in 2-5 years after his presidency ends....will be a fucking 1%, not because of being a former President, but because he lined the pockets of more banksters and big business fuckers than anyone ever has.

[Agschmid]

7. Specific bankers, CEO's could be jailed...

HIGHLY unlikely but it could happen?

[1StrongBlackMan]

10. It could happen ...

only if evidence could be developed that ties the Bankers/CEOs to the crime. Fortunately/unfortunately, we don't have a Thomas Becket prosecutorial Theory.

As such, only the lower level sales guy/woman ... and, maybe, sales manager, gets sent to prison ... and they have been.

[Agschmid]

15. Yup.

[L0oniX]

20. That won't happen. That's why they pay $250,000 for a speech.

[Rex]

9. So then they are not like humans, because when the human body dies so do all the cells.

Maybe we can get that small part overruled. Where goes the corpse of the corporation so goes the CEO and COOs.

[think]

4. And why are they still allowed to lobby, make political donations, and pay politicians for speeches?

[PSPS]

8. Because it's really "of the plutocrats by the plutocrats for the plutocrats."

The stock prices for most of these outfits actually went UP after this was announced -- because the "punishment" was so insignificant.

[hifiguy]

11. That remains the trillion-dollar question.

It's a cost of doing business until people start spending some serious time in the slammer making big rocks into little ones.

[Agschmid]

12. Who would you jail?

Who do you think the responsible party is?

That's a tough question, does it fall at the CEO's feet? I think so.

[hifiguy]

16. CEO, CFO, or the VP running that department,

or maybe all of them for good measure. Someone is in charge and signed off on this and there has to be a paper trail. Put them in the hoosegow,

Steal $500 from a liquor store and you go to big-boy prison for a good while. Steal billions and you should to the same prison for a hell of a lot longer.

[Stallion]

13. Because Corporations Aren't People--oh wait

nm

[Rex]

14. HOW would you take them to court and jail them is the question.

You can do a lot of legal stuff to the body of the corporation, but you CANNOT do jack shit to the zillionaire that owns it and runs it. Not as far as criminal proceedings against the individual are concerned. MAYBE we need to rethink how LLCs etc.. work against the 'common good' or is that to revolutionary?

Can't we also have Too Big To Not Jail?

Strange world, this place.

[Agschmid]

17. Well in some ways that zillionaire is you and me, if we own stock.

Sure we aren't Carl Ichann but I own some Apple stock, so am I responsible for how they act? It's an interesting question.

[Rex]

21. No, you put money into their company hoping to make a profit.

NOT that they will commit crimes against the nation. IMO. I think the ones that must be held responsible are the CEOs and COOs...just like we do with the WH CEO and XO.

The 'brains' of a corporation should not be immune to criminal prosecution imo. And sometimes it is not. Just look at Jeff Skilling. The fact that he got 14 years is something imo.

There needs to be consistency imo. Otherwise I think the many start to feel the game is rigged against them by the few.