In December 2010, Madoffs eldest son, Mark, was found hanged in his New York apartment on the second anniversary of the billionaire investment managers arrest for what was then described the biggest swindle in Wall Street history. (Its season tickets for the New York Mets went for $38,100.) Andrew Denney. And Madoff's brother, Peter, who helped run the business, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2012, despite claims he was in the dark about his brother's misdeeds. Victims of Mr Madoff's fraud included celebrities and everyday people, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. For decades, Madoff enjoyed an image as a self-made financial guru whose Midas touch defied market fluctuations. Chin was born on May 18, 1955, in Guangdong province, Mainland China.He was the only child of Bing Hing "David" Chin (a.k.a. A former law clerk had e-mailed him to say that more than a dozen television trucks were already lined up near the courthouse. Denny Chin, Southern District of New York Court site, "Chin Shares Experiences as Federal District Court Judge, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Denny_Chin&oldid=1133235341, This page was last edited on 12 January 2023, at 20:46. And he turned, he looked at me, but he never looked at the victims. v. Just thought Id give you the heads up, Judge Gorenstein wrote. "The law naturally appealed to me, in part because of the challenges we faced growing up," Judge Chin recalls in the video. Madoff's other son, Andrew, died from cancer at age 48. Madoff investor George Nierenberg thought the reason Madoff spoke to the victims might have been something he said at Madoff's plea hearing several months ago. Madoff responded: There is no innocent explanation.. "You see how our system works," he said. In the 1980s, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities occupied three floors of a midtown Manhattan high-rise. Chin tossed out many of Patricia Conradt's claims but said her principal claims could proceed to trial. On March 23, 2011, Chin rejected Google's plan to digitize every book published, saying the plan violated copyright laws. Madoff, 82, died at the Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina, the bureau said in a statement. Chin slept with his four siblings in the living room of a one-bedroom apartment, a situation he said was common in his neighborhood. Video, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Harry and Meghan told to 'vacate' Frogmore Cottage, China and Belarus call for peace in Ukraine, Rare Jurassic-era bug found at Arkansas Walmart, Ed Sheeran says wife developed tumour in pregnancy, Dozens of girls treated after new Iran poisonings, Man survives 31 days in jungle by eating worms. Chin said the lawsuit contained sufficient facts to make it plausible that the suicide was foreseeable, that police had a duty to protect Conradt from killing himself, and that the officers and NBC acted with deliberate indifference. Judge Chin would impose a term of 150 years on Mr. Madoff, perhaps the most stunning and widely discussed sentencing in the history of American white-collar crime. Early life. Another dilemma, he said, rested in the fact that because none of the counts against Mr. Madoff carried a sentence of life imprisonment (indeed, none carried more than 20 years), he could not impose a conventional life sentence. He worked for law firm Davis Polk after his clerkship, then became an Assistant U.S. Attorney for four years, and later started his own firm with friends. "Is there rampant racism? But he added that it was important to remember the history of Asians in the United States, and mentioned in particular the Korematsu case and the Japanese internment camps during World War II. They worked hard, said Thomas Morling, who worked closely with the Madoff brothers in the mid-1980s. Chin currently teaches first year Legal Writing at Fordham as an adjunct professor. For reasons of symbolism, and to further the principles of retribution and deterrence and to keep faith with victims, Bernard Madoff was sentenced to a 150 years in prison. A spokeswoman for the company did not immediately return a telephone message. After spending several months under house arrest at his $7m penthouse apartment, he was led off to jail in handcuffs, to scattered applause from angry investors in the courtroom. Extraordinarily evil By the time Judge Chin entered his chambers on the morning of Monday, June 29, he had decided what his draft was missing, he said. [8] He was an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District from 1982 to 1986. The United States Senate confirmed Chin on August 9, 1994, and Chin received his commission the next day. Chin's path to his judgeship offers a compelling parable of an immigrant's success. Madoff, a former Nasdaq chairman, had earned a reputation as a trusted money manager with a track record of delivering stellar returns in good markets and bad. "In nine years I've had two incidents and I think I dealt with them just fine," Chin said. [26] Chin explained that imposing the maximum sentence on Madoff was appropriate because he had concluded that Madoff's crimes were "staggering" and "extraordinary evil" and wanted the sentence to have a stronger deterrent effect. They were two struggling kids from Queens. In 1990, he joined the law firm Vladeck, Waldman, Elias & Engelhard, P.C., where he specialized in labor and employment law and represented employees and unions. About a dozen Madoff employees and associates were charged in the federal case. The ugly truth: No securities were ever bought or sold. Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit)", "2nd Circ. "They were two struggling kids from Queens. In her lawsuit, Patricia Conradt claims a police officer at the scene of the shooting told a "Dateline" producer: "That'll make good TV. Judge Denny Chin: Born To Run Time for a quick break from Biglaw and bonuses. On the other hand, because he is one of few Asian-American federal judges, "I know that I have to do a good job, because I know that if I screw up, it's not just me," it will be the "Chinese judge" that screwed up. At the time of Madoff's arrest, fake account statements were telling clients they had holdings worth $60 billion. "He stole from the rich. display: none; He had also received an e-mail that day from Gabriel W. Gorenstein, a magistrate judge who had reached into the wooden wheel that is used to randomly assign cases in the courthouse and selected an envelope that contained Judge Chins name. Five went on trial in late 2013 and watched DiPascali take the witness stand as the government's star witness. Judge Denny Chin denied Mr Madoff's request, noting many victims were still suffering due to their financial losses. Imposing a 150-year sentence in 2009, judge Denny Chin called Madoffs crimes extraordinarily evil. As agents scoured records for evidence of a broader conspiracy and cultivated DiPascali as a cooperator, the scandal turned Madoff into a pariah, evaporated life fortunes, wiped out charities and apparently pushed some investors to die by suicide. We thought he was God; we trusted everything in his hands, Elie Wiesel, the late Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate, said in the same year. He knew he would be arriving at work early. The scandal also exacted a personal toll on the family: One of his sons, Mark, killed himself on the second anniversary of his father's arrest in 2010. U.S. District Judge Denny Chin called the scope of the fraud "staggering" and gave the 71-year-old financier the maximum sentence allowed, ensuring Madoff would live out his days behind bars. We did nothing wrong," said Dominic Ambrosino, a retired New York City corrections officer. Judge Denny Chin called Madoffs crimes extraordinarily evil. Then he. In 2009, U.S. District Judge Denny Chin sentenced Madoff to 150 years in prison, a verdict he said sent a message his crimes were "extraordinarily evil, and that this kind of manipulation of the . Mr. Madoff rose and offered a lengthy apology, saying he felt horrible guilt. He turned to face the victims, and apologized again. So, you know, I've served. Klayman later alleged in a brief that because minorities cannot obtain positions in high places without the support of their communities, Chin could not have gotten his appointment without the support of John Huang. In bankruptcy filings, trustee Irving Picard said family members "used customers' accounts as though they were their own," putting Madoff's maid, boat captain and house sitter in Florida on the company payroll and paying nearly $1 million in fees at high-end golf clubs in Florida and on Long Island, N.Y. Picard has sought to reclaim ill-gotten gains by freezing Madoff's business bank accounts and selling off legitimate portions of his firm, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC. [2][3][4] Chin was the first Asian American appointed as a United States District Judge outside of the Ninth Circuit. "I'm looking for people who are smart, I'm looking for people I can work with," said Chin, who gets 500 applications for clerkships every year. When asked what types of questions he asks clerkship candidates, Chin said he always asks candidates to tell him about themselves. He recalled that as he had thought about Mr. Madoffs conduct, two words came to mind: extraordinarily evil.. Cheryl Weinstein said, Bernard Madoff dresses like us, walks like us, eats and drinks like us, but underneath, he is a beast. Chin assumed senior status on June 1, 2021. Material from The Associated Press was used in this report. February 26, 2008 / 5:54 PM Im surprised Chin didnt suggest stoning in the public square, he added. Mr. IRWIN CANTOR: I'm a professional loser, yeah. The New York Times also interviewed Mr. Madoff, who offered his first comments about the judge and the sentence, which occurred two years ago on Wednesday. But the most forceful number in federal court this morning was nine. This site is maintained by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts on behalf of the Federal Judiciary. A federal prison website listed his probable release date as November 11, 2139. The order left her with $2.5 million. Madoffs wife, Ruth, survives him. Money launderers 'prey on generation Covid', Human error to blame for train crash - Greek PM, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. It all came crashing down in the winter of 2008 with a dramatic confession at Madoff's 12th-floor apartment on the Upper East Side. "I saw what a great job [being a federal judge] was," he said. Judge Chin and his wife Kathy Hirata Chin have written, produced, and presented, together with a team from the Asian American Bar Association of New York, a series of reenactments of historic cases involving Asian American litigants. The probation department had recommended a 50-year term, while the defense lawyer had sought 12 years behind bars for his client. . Madoff's other son, Andrew, died from cancer at age 48. As Fordham University School of Law's inaugural Lawrence W. Pierce Distinguished Jurist in Residence, Judge Denny Chin of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit says he . Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. As far as we know, Sorkin said, there was no ferreting away of funds. After the meeting, a lawyer for the family contacted regulators, who alerted federal prosecutors and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Judge Chin graduated from Princeton University magna cum laude and received his law degree from Fordham Law School. In the headlines and news accounts that followed, the words extraordinarily evil seemed to be everywhere. U.S. District Judge Denny Chin showed no mercy, sentencing Madoff to the maximum 150 years in prison. He began his Wall Street career in 1960 alongside his brother Peter with a few thousand dollars saved from working as a lifeguard and installing sprinklers. }, First published on February 26, 2008 / 5:54 PM. More than 15,400 claims against Madoff were filed. UK banks were also among those who lost money, with HSBC Holdings saying it had exposure of around $1bn. School teachers, farmers, mechanics and many others also lost money. The lawyer, Ira Lee Sorkin, listed several reasons, including Mr. Madoffs confessing to his sons, knowing he would be turned in; his full acceptance of responsibility for his crimes; and his efforts to assist in the recovery of lost assets. "That's something I live with, as well," he said. Rather, they are doing what they are supposed to be doing placing their trust in our system of justice.. His clients ranging from Florida retirees to celebrities such as Steven Spielberg, actor Kevin Bacon and Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax consistently enjoyed steady double-digit returns. [9], On October 6, 2009, President Obama nominated Chin to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Please enter valid email address to continue. Judge Chin noted in the interviews that 20 or 25 years would have effectively been a life sentence for Mr. Madoff, and any additional years would have been purely symbolic. In fact, today, when he did turn around and acknowledged the victims, I felt as if there was a satisfaction that I had actually penetrated. But in truth no securities were ever bought or sold. Madoff was in a bathrobe when two FBI agents arrived at his door unannounced on a December morning. Bruce Baron, a lawyer for Patricia Conradt, said: "This decision shows no one is above the law, no matter how powerful.". The recovered sum fell far short of the sums Madoff told duped clients he was managing. Ruth is still living. He stole from the poor. As a federal judge in the Southern District of New York, Judge Denny Chin sees some of the most cutting-edge cases in the country, so much so that three of his cases were used as plots for the popular Law and Order television series.But Chin's position is unique for another reason as well he was the first Asian-American appointed to a federal district court judgeship outside the 9th . He recalled when the Houston Rockets came to town, along with the team's new star, Yao Ming, his younger children were excited about going to the game. hide caption. Judge Denny Chin explains his reasoning. [25] On June 29, 2009, Chin accepted the prosecutor's recommendation to sentence Madoff to a prison term of 150 years, thus effectively handing down a life sentence. He began to consider how to articulate the message he wanted to send. Among them was Nobel Peace Prize winner and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, who recalled meeting Madoff years earlier at a dinner where they talked about history, education and Jewish philosophy not money. The company became one of the largest market-makers - matching buyers and sellers of stocks - and Mr Madoff served as chairman of the Nasdaq stock exchange. Good candidates will often lead the question into a conversation. Before the sentence was handed down, Madoff faced the wrath of nine of the hundreds of people he cheated in the fraud that wiped out fortunes large and small. "Charles Ponzi is now a footnote," said Anthony Sabino, a defense lawyer specializing in white collar criminal defense. Chin, a United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit, shared that as a first-generation Chinese American and first in his family to attend college, he arrived at Princeton 48 years ago alone on a bus he had taken from the Port Authority in New York City carrying two suitcases. Totally a nice guy, understated, unassuming, fell for it lock, stock and barrel. Weighing victim emails Typing on a computer in chambers, and on a laptop at home, Judge Chin continued preparing a draft of the statement that he would read in court. [9][13], In 2001, Chin rejected a motion by the Parents Television Council (PTC) to dismiss a lawsuit that the World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) filed against it. I mean, serial killers get a death sentence, but thats virtually what he gave me.. Yet symbolism was important, he said, given the enormity of Mr. Madoffs crimes. 2023 by the Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia. On March 12, Madoff pleaded guilty to securities fraud and other charges, saying he was "deeply sorry and ashamed." The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary reported Chin's nomination to the full Senate on December 10, 2009[10] and he was confirmed by a 980 vote on April 22, 2010. Judge Chin Leaving Seat, Along With Pa. Trial Judge - Law360", "Judge rejects Parents Television Council motion to Dismiss Lawsuit", "World Wrestling Entertainment Settles Lawsuit With Parents Television Council; Founder Brent Bozell Issues Apology", Judge Denies Application Involving Martha Stewart Trial Ink Expert, Government Witness in Martha Stewart Trial Not Guilty of Lying, Korean businessman guilty in oil-for-food case, Texas oilman Wyatt sentenced to year in prison, Google Wins: Court Issues a Ringing Endorsement of Google Books, Challenge to Google Books Is Declined by Supreme Court, "Anil Kumar gets 2 years' probation in Galleon case - The Boston Globe", Madoff Goes to Jail After Guilty Pleas to All Charges, Madoff Is Sentenced to 150 Years for Ponzi Scheme, "Judge Recounts His Thoughts in Madoff Sentencing", Hon. Most judges will tell you that sentencing is the most difficult thing we do, he said. But he decided that 150 years would send a loud, decisive message. "It was a very vigorous job process because once you have the job you have it for life," he added. A Bankruptcy or Magistrate Judge? Denny Chin (; born April 13, 1954 [1]) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, based in New York City. At both levels, Judge Chin was the first Asian American federal judge outside the Ninth Circuit. He became so hated he had to wear a bulletproof vest to court. The judge called Madoff's deeds "extraordinarily evil," and said he needed to send a symbolic message to those who might try to perpetuate a comparable fraud. We trusted everything in his hands," Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel, whose foundation lost $15.2 million, said in 2009. Madoff has already been ordered to forfeit assets worth more than $170 billion the amount prosecutors say "flowed into the principal account to perpetrate the Ponzi scheme." / AP. In the middle of his trial, Wyatt changed his plea to guilty as part of a plea bargain with the government. But what the SEC never found out was that behind the scenes, in a separate office kept under lock and key, Madoff was secretly spinning a web of phantom wealth by using cash from new investors to pay returns to old ones. "I cannot adequately express how sorry I am for what I have done," he said in March 2009, when he pleaded guilty. From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. "Bernie, up until his death, lived with guilt and remorse for his crimes," his lawyer Brandon Sample said in a statement. Fake account statements were telling clients they had holdings worth $ 60 billion victims, and exclusive.... `` Charles Ponzi is now a footnote, '' he said, given the enormity of mr. Madoffs.... Up near the courthouse we know, Sorkin said, given the of... 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