Via TD Thornton
Veterinarian Seth Fishman, who is currently in custody but appeals 11 year sentence for two counts of supplying drugs in a decades-long international doping conspiracy, filed legal action against the $13.5 million forfeiture also imposed on him, for that the judge’s order is illegal.
“The confiscation sought here is not authorized by law and is therefore completely illegal,” Fishman’s attorney, Steven Kessler, stated in a September 12 filing in Southern District Court. of the United States (Southern District of New York).
“Preliminary Confiscation Order (POF) seeks a monetary award equivalent to the alleged value of falsely branded or adulterated products that form the basis of criminal charges,” the filing continued. customary. “It continues to seek an alternative forfeiture order – i.e. property that has no relationship to any criminal activity – up to the value of the money judgment.
“[But] the [relevant] Regulations do not allow a monetary award of equal value to misbranded products. It also does not allow forfeiture of replacement assets if misbranded products are no longer available…. “the filing of the said application.
“Therefore, governmental statutory remedy for the manufacture or entry into interstate commerce of falsely labeled or adulterated products is limited to the seizure of that product. POF is in excess of and contrary to regulation. Therefore, it is illegal and must be rejected….
“If the POF actually sought to ‘seize … any and all drugs that were adulterated or mislabeled by Respondent’ to enter interstate commerce, the POF would be legal….” The fishman’s profile made it clear.
“Misbranding is not a confiscation crime. Fishman, 21 USC § 334, allows the government to seize only the mislabeled or adulterated products themselves and any devices used to manufacture those products. Nothing more,” the filing states.
Fishman’s filing further argues that “Congress has provided monetary penalties for the introduction of adulterated and misbranded products into the flow of interstate commerce. However, those penalties are fines, not forfeiture of proceeds,” and are capped at $1 million for certain violations.
Fishman was actually fined $250,000 after prosecutors presented evidence that his drug peddling business made millions of dollars a year. Fishman is also liable for $25 million in damages along with other convicted accomplices. Neither of those monetary orders was questioned when Fishman formally objected to the seizure.
The filing continues: “In a few cases, a court has authorized forfeiture of proceeds or facilitation of property or a judgment of forfeiture upon an allegation of false trademark infringement. . However, those decisions authorizing such relief are based on other criminal charges, accompanied by false trademark violations, specifically allowing forfeiture, such as money transfer fraud or money laundering, none of which are even alleged against Tien Dr. Fishman, not to mention proven, here. “
In a nutshell, the filing said, “It has never been alleged or shown that Dr. Fishman ‘actually acquired’ any tainted property as a result of any crime, let alone any crime. more than 13 million dollars.”
A separate legal filing from September 8 notes that Fishman transited in the federal prison system from New York to Florida and that due to COVID-19 restrictions related to his movement, the law His monk could barely talk to him.
“He has [been in transit to] Philadelphia and Tallahassee (and possibly other locations) prior to arrival [Sept. 7] in Miami. As the Court knows, upon arrival at each facility, an inmate is quarantined and must go through strict COVID procedures before being allowed to use phone privileges, even in the presence of his attorney.
“Because of this, I was able to speak to Dr. Fishman only once while he was on the flight, and that call was brief. We’ve made a significant effort to talk to him since then, but it’s not my fault or the Bureau of Prisons, it hasn’t happened yet. I hope that, now that Dr. Fishman is in his place, communication will be easier,” the September 8 filing states.
