Hardly anyone who helped create the Great Recession has been charged with anything, not even jaywalking. Contrast this with the aftermath of the Savings & Loan Scandal when 800 bankers spent more than a few nights in jail. Could this be because the government prosecuted 1,000 cases relative to the S&Ls and our 21st century government hasn't prosecuted 50? Bill Black, who was a major force in the S&L prosecutions, comments as to our 21st financial scandal, "There were no criminal referrals from the regulators. No fraud working groups. No national task force. There has been no effective punishment of the elites here.” Basically, our government said, "Tough shit. We will not seek to ferret out and try potential criminals."
Syracuse University keeps track of the cases bank regulators refer to the Justice Department. Their database "indicates that in 1995, bank regulators referred 1,837 cases to the Justice Department. In 2006, that number had fallen to 75. In the four subsequent years, a period encompassing the worst of the crisis, an average of only 72 a year have been referred for criminal prosecution."
For more items to make your blood boil, read this article by Gretchen Morgenson and Louise Story.
Syracuse University keeps track of the cases bank regulators refer to the Justice Department. Their database "indicates that in 1995, bank regulators referred 1,837 cases to the Justice Department. In 2006, that number had fallen to 75. In the four subsequent years, a period encompassing the worst of the crisis, an average of only 72 a year have been referred for criminal prosecution."
For more items to make your blood boil, read this article by Gretchen Morgenson and Louise Story.
No comments:
Post a Comment