National Roundup

Ohio
Woman who fled business fraud sentencing seeks early release
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio woman who fled the United States for Mexico ahead of her sentencing in one of the biggest corporate fraud cases in decades is asking for early release from prison, citing poor health and fear of contracting the coronavirus behind bars.

Rebecca Parrett, now 72, was convicted in 2008 of securities fraud and other charges in a $1.9 billion scheme at health care financing company National Century Financial Enterprises.

Parrett, who was free on bond, fled to Mexico after her conviction. Federal Judge Algenon Marbley sentenced her in absentia to 25 years in prison. Parrett was apprehended in 2010, sent to prison and is in a minimum-security federal prison in Dublin, California.

She is asking for early release, saying she suffers from “a rare blood disease that has no cure,” and other ailments, including arthritis, high blood pressure, osteoporosis and cholesterol. She also fears contracting COVID-19 while in prison.

In a six-page, single-spaced letter to Marbley filed in federal court last month, Parrett apologized to the judge for leaving the country, saying she was overwhelmed with depression and at “the lowest point of my life.”

“I truly am sorry for the additional aggravation and work that I created for you and others,” Parrett wrote. “My state of mind was stuck on terminating my life and I never had any thought of other consequences at the time.”

“I truly am sorry for the additional aggravation and work that I created for you and others,” Parrett wrote. “My state of mind was stuck on terminating my life and I never had any thought of other consequences at the time.”

Parrett described tough early years, including an abusive first marriage. She included notes of support from a chaplain, a minister, a doctor and friends, who spoke of charity work she did while in Mexico, including volunteering at an orphanage.

A response from the judge is likely weeks away. The government has not filed a formal response but is expected to oppose Parrett’s request.

Bureau of Prisons records show more than 4,700 federal inmates and more than 1,400 staffers currently have confirmed COVID-19 cases, with more than 20,000 inmates and more than 1,800 staff members having recovered. There have been 145 federal inmate deaths and two federal prison staff deaths attributed to COVID-19.

Prosecutors likened the fraud uncovered at National Century, based in suburban Columbus, to a privately held-company version of the Enron or WorldCom scandals.

The company called itself the country’s largest health care financing company when it collapsed in 2002. Prosecutors said executives authorized millions in unsecured loans to the health care providers, then misled investors about the loans.

Four other National Century executives, including the company’s founder, were convicted of multiple counts of wire and securities fraud and money laundering.

Minnesota
St. Paul police chief: Officer shouldn’t have shot Black man
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A St. Paul officer who shot and wounded a Black man who emerged naked from a dumpster while being sought in connection with a sexual assault failed to measure up to department standards, the city’s police chief said.

Chief Todd Axtell said Tuesday at a news conference where he released police bodycam video of the confrontation that he’d taken “swift, decisive and serious action” against the officer, identified by state investigators as Officer Anthony Dean.

Axtell said state law precludes him from releasing details of the action. The Minneapolis Star Tribune and St. Paul Pioneer Press, citing law enforcement sources they did not identify, reported that the officer was fired following Saturday night’s shooting of Joseph Javonte Washington.

“When I asked myself if the officer’s actions on Saturday night were reasonable and necessary,” Axtell said, “the only answer I could come up with is “No.”

St. Paul Police Federation President Paul Kuntz defended the officers involved, saying they were trying to apprehend “a violent and dangerous felon.”

“The officers worked to arrest the man using many de-escalation techniques,” Kuntz said in a statement before Axtell’s news conference. “This was a difficult situation for everyone involved.”

The union declined to confirm whether Dean had been fired. The officer’s race wasn’t immediately known.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which is investigating the shooting, said Dean shot Washington, who had no weapons or other possessions when he emerged from the dumpster behind a funeral home. Washington, 31, of Lakeville, is recovering at Regions Hospital.

In the body camera footage, a female officer attempts to coax Washington out of the dumpster and onto the ground. He gets out and an officer shouts “Don’t run!” before shots are fired. Washington is bitten by a police K-9 and then screams for the dog to get off him.

It wasn’t known whether Washington had a lawyer who could comment on his behalf.

No officers were injured and all of those involved had been placed on a standard administrative leave following the shooting.

Washington has been charged with three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, one count of kidnapping, and one count of second degree assault in connection with an alleged attack several hours earlier in Lakeville.

Georgia
Students sue university system over tuition, fees
ATLANTA (AP) — Students who took online classes at the University of Georgia and the Georgia Institute of Technology due to the pandemic are now seeking a return of some tuition and fees.

The students filed two class-action lawsuits this week, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. They say they didn’t get the full educational experience they anticipated when they paid their tuition and fees.

A representative of the University System of Georgia says the institution does not discuss pending litigation and declined comment. The system oversees operations at the two schools and Georgia’s other public colleges and universities and is a defendant in the lawsuits.

The lawsuits are similar to others which have been filed against colleges and universities across the nation.