Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison

[xx44]

I read some of the other posts regarding prison time. I think some of you might find my experience if not interesting then at least entertaining.

I was a partner in a brokerage firm in NYC during the bull market. Four years earlier I was a co-manager of a branch of a nation wide firm that was involved (unbeknown to me) in some shady chit. An overzealous DA threw out his net and I unfortunately got scooped up.

As others were taking deals I was determined to fight the charges as I felt though I was not lilly-white, I did not do anything criminal. From the day I heard about the investigation I retained a top white collar attorney. Hoping that he could tell the DA he was wrong about me/us(2 partners and 3 JR partners of our present firm who also worked at the branch of the firm in question). LOL, that did no good, as I was indicted 9 months later.

Still refusing to plea to anything, thinking the US justice system is perfect we had a year to prepare for trial. Let me tell you,this was the worst year of my life.

Myself and 3 jr partners were going to trial (45 people were either indicted or plead out). I felt confident at the start of jury picking, by the end of the day I wanted to kill myself(figuratively).

The jury was not my peers. Housewives and the unemployed from Harlem (no offense to anybody)were not the ideal people to hear a case so complicated that even the lawyers needed constant explanation of terms and scenarios. What really got me negged out was my attorney's first question to a prospective juror. He asked, "Do you think they did anything wrong?". The response, "well they are here aren't they?".

If found guilty I potentially faced over 20 years, realistically it could be 6-8 years. The trial was going to last 9 months, which I considered jail time anyway because I was in total disbelieving misery. The cost would be several more 100's of thousands of dollars, so the day before opening statements I made a deal(the hardest thing I ever had to do). 2-6 years, meaning I would be out if thing went well in 20 months, if not well 2 years and if badly, up to 6 years.

So this Jewish white kid (well not a kid 32 at the time)that never even knew anybody who went to jail, was processed through Rikers Island on his way to state prison.

Let me also say I did not go to a fed prison. At the time there was a big competition to who gets these cases the state or feds. Therefore I did not go to a camp, but a medium security Ny prison, where 1/3 rd of the convicts had life on the end of the sentence.

It would be too much to write about my working experience, the DA and jail in memoir form. So ask me what ever you want. I do not want to give names, and would appreciate if you respect the anonymity the net gives.