The Dewey 'Secret Seven,' Now Unmasked
Who are they, what are they pleading to, and what are the implications for the remaining Dewey defendants?
Dewey know the identities of the “Secret Seven,” the seven former employees of Dewey & LeBoeuf who have pleaded guilty and agreed to help Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance make his case against the four remaining defendants? As of today, we do.
Yesterday we wrote about the recently unsealed plea agreement of Francis Canellas, the failed firm’s former finance director. Today we bring word of the other six cooperators and the deals they’ve reached with the government….
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Here are the no-longer Secret Seven, in alphabetical order, along with their positions at Dewey, what they pleaded to, and their possible exposure (via Am Law Daily):
1. Ilya Alter: budget director; second-degree scheme to defraud (a misdemeanor); must complete 200 hours of community service in exchange for the prosecution’s recommendation that he be sentenced to probation.
2. Frank Canellas: finance director; grand larceny in the second degree (a felony); prosecution will recommend two to six years in prison (out of a possible 15 years) if he cooperates fully with the prosecution.
3. Diane Casino: director of revenue support; second-degree falsifying business records (a misdemeanor); must complete 50 hours of community service in exchange for the prosecution’s recommendation that she be sentenced to probation.
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4. Jyhjing “Victoria” Harrington: accounting manager; first-degree scheme to defraud (a felony); possible sentence under state sentencing guidelines ranges from probation to four years in prison, but prosecution will recommend probation if she cooperates.
5. Thomas Mullikin: controller (who went on to become controller at Paul Weiss, post-Dewey); first-degree scheme to defraud (a felony); possible sentence under state sentencng guidelines ranges from probation to four years in prison, but prosecution will recommend five months’ incarceration if he cooperates.
6. David Rodriguez: partner relations specialist; second-degree falsifying business records (a misdemeanor); must complete 50 hours of community service in exchange for the prosecution’s recommendation that he be sentenced to probation.
7. Lourdes Rodriguez: billing director; second-degree scheme to defraud (a misdemeanor); must complete community service in exchange for the prosecution’s recommendation that she be sentenced to probation.
Taken as a whole, these aren’t particularly harsh sentences. If the case had been handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office rather than the District Attorney’s Office, it’s likely that the sentences would have been higher.
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But note that the crimes in question, even the misdemeanors, involve dishonesty, fraud, or deceit — the types of offenses that can prevent bar admission or get a previously admitted attorney disbarred. One can therefore understand how Zachary Warren, the low-level ex-Dewey staffer who is now a lawyer, couldn’t reach a plea deal, given how it would probably spell the end of his legal career (at least for a time).
Dewey think the DA’s office can put LeBoeuf on the bones of its cases against Steven Davis, Stephen Dicarmine, and Joel Sanders? Seven might be Cy Vance’s lucky number.
Judge Unseals Guilty Pleas of Six More Dewey Staffers [Am Law Daily]
Earlier: The Identities Of The Dewey ‘Secret Seven’ Are Slowly Being Revealed
What Else Dewey Know About Zachary Warren?
