EarthLink Founder Weighs Plea.EarthLink Inc. co-founder Reed E. Slatkin signed a consent decree A settlement of a lawsuit or criminal case in which a person or company agrees to take specific actions without admitting fault or guilt for the situation that led to the lawsuit. A consent decree is a settlement that is contained in a court order. with securities regulators and is discussing a plea bargain plea bargain n. in criminal procedure, a negotiation between the defendant and his attorney on one side and the prosecutor on the other, in which the defendant agrees to plead "guilty" or "no contest" to some crimes, in return for reduction of the severity of the with the U.S. Attorney's Office over what authorities have called one of the largest alleged Ponzi schemes ever investigated. Slatkin remains under criminal investigation by the FBI for investment fraud. The agency raided his Santa Barbara Santa Barbara (săn'tə bär`brə, –bərə), city (1990 pop. 85,571), seat of Santa Barbara co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1850. home and his offices in Goleta, Calif., and Santa Fe, N.M., last month. Slatkin's cooperation signals that he is trying to avoid a court showdown over an investment management business that took in hundreds of millions of dollars from wealthy investors. Some investors questioned the move, however, saying the plea negotiations could disrupt investigations and make it harder for them to find out what happened to their money. Documents seized from Slatkin's home and turned over by his attorneys last month list more than 750 investors in the alleged scheme, including Hollywood actors and producers, fellow EarthLink co-founder Sky Dayton and members of the Church of Scientology Church of Scientology: see Scientology, Church of. , of which Slatkin was an ordained or·dain tr.v. or·dained, or·dain·ing, or·dains 1. a. To invest with ministerial or priestly authority; confer holy orders on. b. To authorize as a rabbi. 2. minister. |
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