Editors' Lesson: Criminals ... Legislate Yourselves!

a. Defendant demanded, sought, and received at least $2.4 million in illicit payments and benefits from his Coconspirators in various forms, including cash, checks, meals, travel, lodging, furnishings, antiques, rugs, yacht club fees, boat repairs and improvements, moving expenses, cars, and boats;

b. Defendant made recommendations and took other official action in order to influence the United States Congress’s appropriations of funds to benefit Coconspirator No. 1 and Coconspirator No. 2, which defendant did, in part, because of his receipt of the above-described payments and benefits, and not because using Coconspirators Nos. 1 and 2 was in the best interest of the country;

c. Defendant used his public office and took other official action to pressure and influence United States Department of Defense personnel to award and execute government contracts in a manner that would benefit Coconspirator No. 1 and Coconspirator No. 2, which defendant did, in part, because of his receipt of the above-described payments and benefits, and not because using Coconspirators Nos. 1 and 2 was in the best interest of the country;

d. Defendant used his public office and took other official action in a manner that would benefit Coconspirator No. 3, which defendant did because of his receipt of the above-described payments and benefits;

e. Defendant and his Coconspirators attempted to conceal and disguise this conspiracy through various means, including one-sided transactions through which one or more Coconspirators would buy property from defendant at an above-market price, would pay money to defendant for property that defendant continued to own, and would sell to defendant property at a below-market price.

f. Defendant and his Coconspirators also attempted to conceal and disguise this conspiracy by directing payments through multi-layered transactions involving corporate entities and bank accounts that defendant and his Coconspirators owned and controlled, including the following payments:

i. By having Coconspirator No. 1 [Brent Wilkes, ADCS president] pay $525,000 to a company controlled by Coconspirator No. 3, in order to pay off a mortgage on the defendant’s Rancho Santa Fe Home that had been issued by a company owned by Coconspirator No. 4;

ii. By having Coconspirator No. 2 [Mitchell Wade, formerly of MZM, Inc.] pay $500,000 to defendant, who caused the money to be deposited into’ the bank account of a company controlled by Coconspirator No. 3 [Thomas Kontogiannis, Real Estate Developer], in order to pay off a mortgage on the defendant’s Rancho Santa Fe Home that had been issued by a company owned by Coconspirator No. 4 [John T. Michael, Coastal Capital];

iii. By having Coconspirator No. 3 pay $200,000 to a company controlled by Coconspirator No. 4, as the down payment for the purchase of the defendant’s Arlington condominium; and

iv. By having Coconspirator No. 2 pay defendant $115,100 in the form of a check made payable to Top Gun Enterprises, Inc., in order to offset the capital gains taxes owed by the defendant on the sale of his Del Mar home.

g. Defendant also attempted to conceal and disguise this conspiracy by intentionally failing to include in his Financial Disclosure Statements to the United States House of Representatives the illicit payments and benefits that he received from his Coconspirators; and

h. Defendant also attempted to conceal and disguise this conspiracy by intentionally failing to include in his United States Individual Income Tax Returns the illicit payments and benefits that he received from his Coconspirators.

…

On or about April 15, 2005, within the Southern District of California, defendant willfully evaded and defeated his lawful income tax due and owing for the calendar year 2004, by preparing, signing and filing with the Internal Revenue Service under penalty of perjury, a false and fraudulent joint U.S. Individual Income Tax Return (2004 Form 1040), in which he falsely stated that his joint taxable income was $121,079, and that he was due a refund of $8,504, whereas, as he then knew, his joint taxable income was at least $1,215,458, and there was a joint taxable income due and owing of at least $385,077.

Plea Agreement. United States v. Randall “Duke” Cunningham. No. 05cr2137-LAB. S.D.Ca. 23 November, 2005.

“My whole life I've lived aboveboard. I've never even smoked a marijuana cigarette. I don't cheat. If a contractor buys me lunch and we meet a second time, I buy the lunch. My whole life has been aboveboard and so this doesn't worry me.” “The last thing I would do is get involved in something that, you know, is wrong. And I feel very confident that I haven't done anything wrong.”

• Randy “Duke” Cunningham.
  

Marcus Stern. “Cunningham defends deal with defense firm’s owner,” Union-Tribune (San Diego), 6/12/05.

“The truth is, I broke the law, concealed my conduct and disgraced my office. I know that I will forfeit my freedom, my reputation, my worldly possessions and, most importantly, the trust of my friends and family.” “In my life, I have known great joy and great sorrow. And now I know great shame. I cannot undo what I have done. But I can atone.”

• Randy “Duke” Cunningham.
  

John M. Broder. “Lawmaker Quits After He Pleads Guilty to Bribes,” NYTs, 11/29/05

“The idea of a congressman taking money is outrageous. And Congressman Cunningham is going to realize that he has broken the law and is going to pay a serious price, which he should.”

• George W. Bush.

John M. Broder and Carl Hulse. “Republicans Denounce Ex-Lawmaker,” NYTs, 11/30/05.

“As Congress mulls over the larger lessons of the Duke's demise, it should begin with the House’s ethics process, … They can start with two obvious reforms: legislating credible controls over the dealings between lobbyists and members of Congress, and repairing an ethics process that now stands as a scandal unto itself.”

“The Duke Shames the Capitol.” Editorial. NYTs, 11/30/05. [emphasis added]