Could NFL Owners Who Donated to Donald Trump's 2017 Inaugural Committee Face Charges?

quote:

---

NFL owners who donated to President Donald Trump’s 2017 inaugural committee are potentially linked to a federal investigation into suspicions of bribery and misappropriated funds. The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York is investigating whether donors to Trump’s inaugural committee believed they were buying favors from, and influence within, the incoming administration.

The federal investigation stems in part from analysis of written documents, computer files and other evidence obtained in raids of properties connected to Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney. In August, Cohen pleaded guilty to eight counts of tax fraud, bank fraud and campaign finance violations. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge William Pauley III sentenced Cohen to three years in prison.

According to a 2017 story by USA Today’s Steve Berkowitz, the following nine NFL owners contributed directly, or indirectly through controlled entities, to Trump’s inaugural committee:

Cleveland Browns: Jimmy Haslam, $100,000. Pilot Travel Centers LLC, of which Haslam is CEO, $300,000
Dallas Cowboys: Jerry Jones (contribution made by Glenstone Limited Partnership, of which Jones is president), $1 million
Houston Texans: Robert McNair, $1 million
Jacksonville Jaguars: Shahid Khan, $1 million
Los Angeles Rams: Stan Kroenke, $1 million
New England Patriots: Robert Kraft (contribution made by Kraft Group LLC, of which Kraft is chairman and CEO), $1 million
New York Jets: Woody Johnson, $1 million
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Edward Glazer, $250,000
Washington Redskins: Daniel Snyder, $1 million

The Journal notes that Trump’s inaugural committee—a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit—raised $107 million, a record amount. Tax filings reviewed by The Journal find that $61 million of the $107 million is associated with vendors. However, the committee has not detailed transactions related to those vendors. The inaugural committee insists that it is unaware of any federal investigation. Further, the committee stresses that it has been audited and, it says, found compliant with federal election and tax laws.

To be clear, there is no indication that any inaugural committee donor—be they an NFL owner or some other high net-worth person—will be charged with crimes, subpoenaed or otherwise pressured into cooperating with federal authorities. The Journal, in fact, cautions that it has not uncovered information suggesting that donors themselves are under investigation. As of now, it appears the investigation is focused on conduct by inaugural committee leadership and staff.

That said, government investigations into institutions often grow rather than recede. Also, to the extent federal authorities or private sector attorneys aware of the investigation leaked its existence to The Journal, it may have been a strategic leak where only part of an investigation’s universe is revealed. Such a leak might have served to warn persons who may be implicated that pressure is mounting and that they ought to cooperate before their names surface in print. Further, the Journal highlights that federal prosecutors have asked to review documents related to a $1 million inaugural committee donation made by Tennessee developer Franklin Haney. Haney was of particular interest to prosecutors given that he hired Cohen to help secure a $5 billion loan from the U.S. Department of Energy.


POSSIBLE CHARGES FOR DONORS—AND LIKELY DEFENSES

If donors are found to have paid for favors, they would find themselves vulnerable to criminal charges for corruption. Some of the charges could resemble those brought against coaches and sneaker executives who have been implicated in the college basketball corruption cases (one of which, U.S. v. Gatto, has led to multiple convictions).

To that end, one possible charge would be conspiracy to commit bribery under 18 U.S.C. § 371. This charge, which carries a potential five-year prison term, prohibits two or more persons from conspiring to defraud the United States or commit any offense against the country. A conspiracy between a donor and an inaugural committee employee to trade money for the intended purpose of currying favor from the incoming White House leadership would conceivably fit the elements of criminal conspiracy.

---