Mark Cuban Found Not Guilty of Insider Trading
schwit1 writes "Mark Cuban won a years-long fight with the federal government Wednesday as jurors decided that the billionaire basketball team owner did not commit insider-trading when he sold his shares in an Internet company in 2004. The jury in federal district court in Dallas said that the Securities and Exchange Commission failed to prove the key elements of its case, including the claim that Cuban agreed to keep certain information confidential and not trade on it. The nine-member jury deliberated about half a day before reaching the unanimous decision that ended the three-week trial."
Don't read this... it is a curse...
In 1952, a little boy named Jimmy was having a jolly good time playing on the abandoned railroad tracks just past the backyard of the property he lived on. Being that he could not go anywhere without his favorite blanket, he also, unsurprisingly, had that with him. After a few hours, Jimmy noticed that it had gotten awfully foggy out, and he could no longer see more than 20 feet in front of him.
Jimmy, frightened by this sudden change, decided to head home. While walking past the shed in his backyard, Jimmy spotted a strange teddy bear that he'd never seen before propped up against the tree behind his shed. He noticed that it was waving at him, and, with his blanket covering his head, began to walk faster. It became difficult for Jimmy to move properly, and he couldn't move any faster than he was moving now; this frightened him even more.
Jimmy then heard something creeping up behind him; he instinctively knew it was the mysterious teddy bear. Given that it was walking considerably faster than him, Jimmy gave up all hope of running away and decided to go on the offensive! He turned around and used his blanket to smack the teddy bear away from him. However, after that happened, Jimmy was thrown about 10 feet into the sky by an unseen entity, and upon landing, he bounced around on the ground a few times by making himself flail like a fish.
Once Jimmy stopped bouncing around, he immediately noticed that something was amiss; he felt a strange object sitting directly under his precious ass. Even though most of his body was not sitting on this object, the rest of his body stayed at the same height as the area that was sitting on top of the object, as if his body was a piece of wood. Being a sharp lad, Jimmy was quickly able to determine that the object his butt was sitting on was, in fact, the teddy bear!
Seconds after realizing this, he heard the teddy bear say, in a small infant's voice, "Like, tsk, owie!" The teddy bear's voice sounded like an echo, as if it was talking in a very small, enclosed space. Following this, Jimmy heard a "vvvvvvvvvvvv" sound, followed by the teddy bear being sucked right up Jimmy's snappyhole as if it were a mere spaghetti noodle! While it was being sucked up, Jimmy noticed that the part of the teddy bear that was currently being sucked up would get smaller so as to fit inside his precious snap.
Jimmy, no longer able to move, began panicking. All of a sudden, Jimmy's brain was filled with information that he had never come across before. Jimmy knew, from that point on, that his ass was becoming something completely different; his ass was becoming a rumblehouse ass! That teddy bear was going to use Jimmy's ass as a bouncehouse!
Jimmy began screaming, rolling all over the ground, and punching random objects. However, he realized his protests were futile when the teddy bear began bouncing off of the sides of Jimmy's ass and inflicting tremendous amounts of tickle upon it! Each time the teddy bear bounced off of the sides of his ass, more tickle was inflicted upon Jimmy's anus. From that point on, Jimmy became a mere shadow of his former self. For the rest of Jimmy's life, all of his brain power was used to relive the events of that nightmare again and again. He was never able to function normally again.
Now that you have read even a single word of this, the same teddy bear will get sucked right into your snappyhole and then use it as a bouncehouse in order to inflict extreme amounts of tickle upon it! To prevent this from occurring, copy this entire story and post it as a comment three times.
Da derp dee derp da teedly derpee derpee dum. Rated PG-13.
The balance of power shifts even more
alim tsk tsk
Don't read this... it is a curse...
In 1952, a little boy named Jimmy was having a jolly good time playing on the abandoned railroad tracks just past the backyard of the property he lived on. Being that he could not go anywhere without his favorite blanket, he also, unsurprisingly, had that with him. After a few hours, Jimmy noticed that it had gotten awfully foggy out, and he could no longer see more than 20 feet in front of him.
Jimmy, frightened by this sudden change, decided to head home. While walking past the shed in his backyard, Jimmy spotted a strange teddy bear that he'd never seen before propped up against the tree behind his shed. He noticed that it was waving at him, and, with his blanket covering his head, began to walk faster. It became difficult for Jimmy to move properly, and he couldn't move any faster than he was moving now; this frightened him even more.
Jimmy then heard something creeping up behind him; he instinctively knew it was the mysterious teddy bear. Given that it was walking considerably faster than him, Jimmy gave up all hope of running away and decided to go on the offensive! He turned around and used his blanket to smack the teddy bear away from him. However, after that happened, Jimmy was thrown about 10 feet into the sky by an unseen entity, and upon landing, he bounced around on the ground a few times by making himself flail like a fish.
Once Jimmy stopped bouncing around, he immediately noticed that something was amiss; he felt a strange object sitting directly under his precious ass. Even though most of his body was not sitting on this object, the rest of his body stayed at the same height as the area that was sitting on top of the object, as if his body was a piece of wood. Being a sharp lad, Jimmy was quickly able to determine that the object his butt was sitting on was, in fact, the teddy bear!
Seconds after realizing this, he heard the teddy bear say, in a small infant's voice, "Like, tsk, owie!" The teddy bear's voice sounded like an echo, as if it was talking in a very small, enclosed space. Following this, Jimmy heard a "vvvvvvvvvvvv" sound, followed by the teddy bear being sucked right up Jimmy's snappyhole as if it were a mere spaghetti noodle! While it was being sucked up, Jimmy noticed that the part of the teddy bear that was currently being sucked up would get smaller so as to fit inside his precious snap.
Jimmy, no longer able to move, began panicking. All of a sudden, Jimmy's brain was filled with information that he had never come across before. Jimmy knew, from that point on, that his ass was becoming something completely different; his ass was becoming a rumblehouse ass! That teddy bear was going to use Jimmy's ass as a bouncehouse!
Jimmy began screaming, rolling all over the ground, and punching random objects. However, he realized his protests were futile when the teddy bear began bouncing off of the sides of Jimmy's ass and inflicting tremendous amounts of tickle upon it! Each time the teddy bear bounced off of the sides of his ass, more tickle was inflicted upon Jimmy's anus. From that point on, Jimmy became a mere shadow of his former self. For the rest of Jimmy's life, all of his brain power was used to relive the events of that nightmare again and again. He was never able to function normally again.
Now that you have read even a single word of this, the same teddy bear will get sucked right into your snappyhole and then use it as a bouncehouse in order to inflict extreme amounts of tickle upon it! To prevent this from occurring, copy this entire story and post it as a comment three times.
snappingness
Don't read this... it is a curse...
In 1952, a little boy named Jimmy was having a jolly good time playing on the abandoned railroad tracks just past the backyard of the property he lived on. Being that he could not go anywhere without his favorite blanket, he also, unsurprisingly, had that with him. After a few hours, Jimmy noticed that it had gotten awfully foggy out, and he could no longer see more than 20 feet in front of him.
Jimmy, frightened by this sudden change, decided to head home. While walking past the shed in his backyard, Jimmy spotted a strange teddy bear that he'd never seen before propped up against the tree behind his shed. He noticed that it was waving at him, and, with his blanket covering his head, began to walk faster. It became difficult for Jimmy to move properly, and he couldn't move any faster than he was moving now; this frightened him even more.
Jimmy then heard something creeping up behind him; he instinctively knew it was the mysterious teddy bear. Given that it was walking considerably faster than him, Jimmy gave up all hope of running away and decided to go on the offensive! He turned around and used his blanket to smack the teddy bear away from him. However, after that happened, Jimmy was thrown about 10 feet into the sky by an unseen entity, and upon landing, he bounced around on the ground a few times by making himself flail like a fish.
Once Jimmy stopped bouncing around, he immediately noticed that something was amiss; he felt a strange object sitting directly under his precious ass. Even though most of his body was not sitting on this object, the rest of his body stayed at the same height as the area that was sitting on top of the object, as if his body was a piece of wood. Being a sharp lad, Jimmy was quickly able to determine that the object his butt was sitting on was, in fact, the teddy bear!
Seconds after realizing this, he heard the teddy bear say, in a small infant's voice, "Like, tsk, owie!" The teddy bear's voice sounded like an echo, as if it was talking in a very small, enclosed space. Following this, Jimmy heard a "vvvvvvvvvvvv" sound, followed by the teddy bear being sucked right up Jimmy's snappyhole as if it were a mere spaghetti noodle! While it was being sucked up, Jimmy noticed that the part of the teddy bear that was currently being sucked up would get smaller so as to fit inside his precious snap.
Jimmy, no longer able to move, began panicking. All of a sudden, Jimmy's brain was filled with information that he had never come across before. Jimmy knew, from that point on, that his ass was becoming something completely different; his ass was becoming a rumblehouse ass! That teddy bear was going to use Jimmy's ass as a bouncehouse!
Jimmy began screaming, rolling all over the ground, and punching random objects. However, he realized his protests were futile when the teddy bear began bouncing off of the sides of Jimmy's ass and inflicting tremendous amounts of tickle upon it! Each time the teddy bear bounced off of the sides of his ass, more tickle was inflicted upon Jimmy's anus. From that point on, Jimmy became a mere shadow of his former self. For the rest of Jimmy's life, all of his brain power was used to relive the events of that nightmare again and again. He was never able to function normally again.
Now that you have read even a single word of this, the same teddy bear will get sucked right into your snappyhole and then use it as a bouncehouse in order to inflict extreme amounts of tickle upon it! To prevent this from occurring, copy this entire story and post it as a comment three times.
I'm assuming Cuban had a top notch legal team. How much will he recoup after this verdict?
He will probably write off the difference on his taxes.
snappingness
Don't read this... it is a curse...
In 1952, a little boy named Jimmy was having a jolly good time playing on the abandoned railroad tracks just past the backyard of the property he lived on. Being that he could not go anywhere without his favorite blanket, he also, unsurprisingly, had that with him. After a few hours, Jimmy noticed that it had gotten awfully foggy out, and he could no longer see more than 20 feet in front of him.
Jimmy, frightened by this sudden change, decided to head home. While walking past the shed in his backyard, Jimmy spotted a strange teddy bear that he'd never seen before propped up against the tree behind his shed. He noticed that it was waving at him, and, with his blanket covering his head, began to walk faster. It became difficult for Jimmy to move properly, and he couldn't move any faster than he was moving now; this frightened him even more.
Jimmy then heard something creeping up behind him; he instinctively knew it was the mysterious teddy bear. Given that it was walking considerably faster than him, Jimmy gave up all hope of running away and decided to go on the offensive! He turned around and used his blanket to smack the teddy bear away from him. However, after that happened, Jimmy was thrown about 10 feet into the sky by an unseen entity, and upon landing, he bounced around on the ground a few times by making himself flail like a fish.
Once Jimmy stopped bouncing around, he immediately noticed that something was amiss; he felt a strange object sitting directly under his precious ass. Even though most of his body was not sitting on this object, the rest of his body stayed at the same height as the area that was sitting on top of the object, as if his body was a piece of wood. Being a sharp lad, Jimmy was quickly able to determine that the object his butt was sitting on was, in fact, the teddy bear!
Seconds after realizing this, he heard the teddy bear say, in a small infant's voice, "Like, tsk, owie!" The teddy bear's voice sounded like an echo, as if it was talking in a very small, enclosed space. Following this, Jimmy heard a "vvvvvvvvvvvv" sound, followed by the teddy bear being sucked right up Jimmy's snappyhole as if it were a mere spaghetti noodle! While it was being sucked up, Jimmy noticed that the part of the teddy bear that was currently being sucked up would get smaller so as to fit inside his precious snap.
Jimmy, no longer able to move, began panicking. All of a sudden, Jimmy's brain was filled with information that he had never come across before. Jimmy knew, from that point on, that his ass was becoming something completely different; his ass was becoming a rumblehouse ass! That teddy bear was going to use Jimmy's ass as a bouncehouse!
Jimmy began screaming, rolling all over the ground, and punching random objects. However, he realized his protests were futile when the teddy bear began bouncing off of the sides of Jimmy's ass and inflicting tremendous amounts of tickle upon it! Each time the teddy bear bounced off of the sides of his ass, more tickle was inflicted upon Jimmy's anus. From that point on, Jimmy became a mere shadow of his former self. For the rest of Jimmy's life, all of his brain power was used to relive the events of that nightmare again and again. He was never able to function normally again.
Now that you have read even a single word of this, the same teddy bear will get sucked right into your snappyhole and then use it as a bouncehouse in order to inflict extreme amounts of tickle upon it! To prevent this from occurring, copy this entire story and post it as a comment three times.
Fuck Moohammad! Fuck Allah!!! FUCK ISLAM!!!!!
Stuff that matters!
NIGGERS
Nine years on the defense is a costly alternative available to but a fraction of defendants... much like American health care options, there almost seems to be a disparity in the remedies afforded the differing social classes.~
Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.
Ernest Hemingway
Now, hopefully he will work to normalize relations with Cuba.
Dave Barnes 9 breweries within walking distance of my house
Quick, someone post something stupid about HFT!
"If it's tat for tit, you must acquit."
Does this mean that I can buy cigars from him again?
How does this qualify in any way?
Even in the Martha Stewart case, they only got her on obstruction of justice. Hard to say whether Cuban was legit or not, all we know is that the evidence was not strong enough to convict.
The theory seems to be that insider trading is so widespread and difficult to prove that one of the government's strategies is to go after a few high profile 'celebrity' cases as a way to drive awareness among the populace. It probably gets your average Joe to think twice before trading on a tip from an executive friend higher up in the corporate ladder, but I suspect the people who really know what they're doing siphon millions out of the market daily.
"failed to prove the key elements of its case, including the claim that Cuban agreed to keep certain information confidential"
Who would believe that Mark Cuban could keep his mouth shut, even if he said he would?
If you have money, you can mount a legal defense. If you don't have money, prosecutors can absolutely destroy you and your life even if you are innocent. There was a book detailing how everyone commits felonies because the federal criminal code, along with regulatory stuff, is so complex. It was called "Three Felonies a Day."
Basically, if a prosecutor wants to put you in jail, you're toast.
So good for Cuban.
Except for ending slavery, the Nazis, communism, & securing American independence, war has never solved anything.
This was a civil case, meaning that he was simply being asked to repay some money, not face jail time.
It also means he was up against the SEC in a spot where they only had to have "Preponderance of Evidence" instead of "Beyond Reason Doubt."
There must have been very little here.
Overreach of federal criminal law is well documented. Anyone interested in the topic should go read "Three Felonies a Day" by Silverglate.
Very few have the resources available to fight -- nearly everyone cops a plea rather than let overzealous prosecutors systematically ruin their lives, which means that government tactics often openly violate the law because they will never get tested in court.
This is a classic case of the government spending so much time and effort on an investigation (6+ years, tens of millions of dollars) that they can't fold regardless of how poor their case is. Mark Cuban is lucky that he had the wealth to fight this and I am grateful he didn't simply pay the fine, the government generally ruins people who find themselves in this position.
OK, didn't RTFA, but let's assume the following:
- insider trading is trading stock based on information obtained from insiders not available to the general public
- these rules are in place to give the general public the idea that stock trading is a "fair game"
- Cuban talked to the CEO of the company privately and suddenly decides to quickly get rid of the stock in that company
- A few days after the fact the company publishes "bad news" and stock price takes a dive.
Question: is the problem that the SEC couldn't prove that information was passed on that influenced Cuban to sell the stock, or that they stacked so many charges (to make it sound reallllly bad) that they overplayed their hand?
When the copyright term is "forever minus a day", live every day like it's the last.