He made millions buying off judges, lawyers, legislators and just about everyone who stood in the way.
Marc Rosenthal, the millionaire attorney from Austin and heir to the Sysco national food distribution corporation, drew a 20 year sentence from federal judge Andrew Hanen who has overseen the government's prosecution of judicial corruption in South Texas. Rosenthal was convicted on 13 counts of racketeering, conspiracy, mail fraud and tampering with a proceeding.
Yes, Rosenthal had the big bucks.
He drove around expensive foreign cars and wowed the natives of South Texas. If you look into the contribution reports of most political candidates for the past dozen or so years, his name will appear prominently with his generous donations to their campaigns.
But was he the source of the corruption we have down that prevails in the region?
Not really. We do just fine on our own.
After all, this is the place where $21 million disappeared into thin air with the help of our elected officials ranging from U.S. representatives, Texas senators, state representatives, port commissioners, engineers, book keepers, lawyers, etc.
Did he corrupt our former district attorney into taking money for letting murderers, wife beaters, child abusers and common criminals walk free?
Honestly? No.
Did he corrupt those members of the diverse boards and commissions to rig contracts for their friends and make millions from designing a change-order bonanza for construction of public facilities?
Honestly? No.
Did he influence the votes of elected and appointed officials to steer business toward their political and financial supporters?
Again, no.
No one elected Rosenthal like they elected Limas and Armando Villaobos and Jim Solis. We expect lawyers to be shady, to twist and warp reality on behalf of their clients. We expect them to shade the truth, to distort the facts, to be as good or as bad as they need to be at what they do on behalf of their clients. We expect them to be aloof to the the point of arrogance when they make their appearance on the courtroom stage.
It's the nature of the legal beast and Rosenthal fund that the local judiciary – everyone from district judges to common case runners – were only too willing to be corrupted. In fact, they beat a path to his door and pandered to his already steroid-driven, oversized ego.
Look at the names of the people whose names were sent by Hanen to the Texas State Bar so they could scrutinize their behavior and take appropriate measures if they found a reason to exert discipline on their peers.Hanen ordered federal prosecutors and agents to notify the State Bar of Texas and others about multiple ethical violations by judges, lawyers and others connected to the case.
Federal court records show that the State Bar of Texas requested transcripts of testimony by 22 people who testified in the Villalobos trial.
Among the transcript requests are those of Limas, Villalobos
and 13 attorneys: Greg Gladden, Tracy Franklin, Rebecca RuBane, Julie Allen, Al Padilla, Rene B. Gonzalez, Charles “Chuck” Mattingly, Jose “Joe” Valle, Jonathan Gracia, Rick Canales, Lawrence J. Rabb, Leonardo Rincones, Jr. and Gaby Garcia.
The State Bar of Texas also requested transcripts of testimony of witnesses Max Wayman, Cesar Mendez, Mario Hernandez and Monica Gracia as well as those of former Texas Ranger Rolando Castañeda, federal agent Keith Steves, FBI agent Mark Gripka.
And let's not forget the role that the likes of Oscar de la fuente, Daniel Robles, Michael Trejo, Michael Young, Charles Willette, Judge Migdalia Lopez, Martin Arambula, etc., etc., played in this sordid saga.
District Judge Elia Cornejo became the target of Jim Solis and others because she did not want to play ball with the crew. And County-Court-at-Law Judge Arturo McDonald received a baptism by fire on his very first day on the job when Robles guided his hand and had him enter a cash case toward his court after Judge Janet Leal had declared it over and done with.
No, federal prosecutors overplayed their hand painting Rosenthal as the kingpin in our squalid legal community. He merely waved dollar bills before the frenzied piranhas he saw circling our courts and they did the rest on their own. If not him, it would have been someone else. In fact, we might have the next Rosenthal watering and cultivating the tree of corruption already and we don't even know it.
We can almost predict that before Rosenthal's 20-year stint is done, some other worthy will grace the pages of our local dailies and give news pundits plenty of grist for their mills. It wasn't just Rosenthal, Limas, Villaobos or Solis who were on trial here. It was all of us.
28 comments:
Well, Rosenthal can afford Bobby, hey Rosenthal!! get Bobby in your payroll, Ask Ernie and Erin!!
Well, Rosenthal will probably never again wear a $3000 suit, drive a $200,000 car, drink an ice cold beer, nor feel the touch of a woman. WOW! From a cradle made of gold to his life ending in the mud.
Shamefully, what you wrote is very well put and extremely accurate.
So what if we raise our own crooks? It is not that he should have gotten less, our home grown cheats should have gotten more time. And it wasn't all of us that were on trial. If you think you should have been tried, well you know what you did. I can agree that many more should stand trial such as whoever it was in the clerks office that facilitated the court assignments and even all those (perhaps you include yourself here) who knew about the corruption and did or said nothing or even tacitly approved of it because it benefited you somehow. I feel no sense of guilt. I didn't vote for a single one of the pols that went down and I never benefited in any way from the corruption. In fact, I was astonished to hear of it and who it touched. No, I don't feel a part of any collective guilt. Also, your expectations of an attorney are far from mine. Perhaps my expectations are to high or maybe (more collective guilt here) we have lowered our (your) standards so much that expecting less is the norm now. I think I will go on expecting more of pols and people who work within our public systems, like the justice system. I would rather be disappointed once again then be willing to accept a lower standard of behavior. I hope we don't let shoddy become the norm.
Good article.
Very well put...Juan. Good job
what? about that Rosenthal can afford Bobby Gay?
The point is not that Rosenthal got 20 years. It is that the other bandidos got off light. Four or five years at a country club is ridiculous for a corrupt judge.
You are absolutely correct!!!!!
Our local corrupt leaders do not need to be influenced----they do very well on their own---thank you.
Livingston --the murderer--is roaming the earth a free man.
Let's not forget the ones who have paid off employees to silence them----the ones who have stolen from charities----the ones who are stealing right this minute from our school children--and the list goes on and on.
And we get insulted when we are told that this is a way of life for us----ha!!!!!!!!!!!
The next corruptible is a federal judge, you know who you are.
Speaking of corrupt, you should take a look at asshole attorney of the year Nat Perez. He's currently defending pedophile and murderer Cadriel, and loudly made a scene in the courthouse about the DA's office needing to remove the "christmas tree with dead people" on it. That tree is part of their Tree of Angels rememberance event So much for having any sympathy for victims of violent crimes. Typical Nat, talking shit about the innocent in our community and defending the scum.
"We expect them to...", therein lies a large part of the problem. People willing to pay the bribe to get their own way. As long as people go along with it, that is the way it will be.
Integrity is doing the right things when no one is looking.
They nailed Rosenthal to the cross because he wouldn't sing so, who is he protecting and why?
I am curious in Browntown
Villalobos...ur next. 10 t0 15 years at lease!!!! Big Bubba is waiting....
Let's hope that Armando Villalobos gets about the same prison term. After all, corrupt elected officials should be sentenced to more jail time for their illegal public actions and their failure to serve the public, while stuffing their pockets with "bribes" for their services to the corrupt. Limas should have gotten a longer sentence too.
The guy was a bully and a prick. That is what pissed Hanen to give him 20 years. Did he deserve it? Probably not. The prosecution selectively went after the weak defendants who it knew would fold immediately. However they chose to deliberately disregard other defendants such as Charles Willette, Daniel Robles , Auorora De La Garza and David Gonzalez who would fight them regardless of all incriminating wire tap recordings in their possession. The State Bar of Texas is a joke and if it couldn't even discipline Wacko attorney Juan Guerra, do you really think that it will do something to these clowns? Look how they handled Rene oliviera with a slap of the hand. So as the saying goes "no hay una sentencia que dure 100 anos ni un cabron que las aguante". Rosenthal will reduce his punishment on appeal . Trust me on this.
Limas wore a wire, rolled over on his pals and played ball with the Feds. Stold thousand and for that he got 6 years of easy time.
Rosenthal was defiant, tried to bully witnesses, disobeyed the trial judges orders and stole millions and for that he got 20 years of hard time.
Yeah...all of this sounds about right.
Mando is next up to bat.
Too light being that Judge Hanen gave him 20 years on each count but to run concurrent. Armando Villalobos, is your ass puckering now? You're looking at 20 years also and maybe more since you were an elected official and the highest law enforcement officer in the county. And, you wouldn't rat on your friends or family! Well, it will cost you now! Good riddance! Wanted to play crook, well you can do jail time like a crook!
Rosenthal is the only outsider -- person not from the valley -- convicted. Look at his sentence compared to all the local pendejos! Probably one of the few who hadn't rubbed elbows with Hanen at parties. Maybe because he's Anglo, or Jewish. One thing we do know, he had balls not to be a rat like most of these local cowards. I despise Rosenthal for his part in corrupting our system but, as the author points out, he never could have done it without the help of the homegrown corrupt bastards.
Here is a point to think about. Did Rosenthal all of a sudden become corrupt once he passed Raymondville heading South? What do you think he was doing in Austin, teaching Rabbinical Studies.
(What do you think he was doing in Austin, teaching Rabbinical Studies.)
Let's ignore that he ever had any association with Judaism. According to Jim Barton (MeanMisterBrownsville blog), Rosental has converted to Catholicism. As do all inmates of Bureau of Prisons. But hey, wasn't Jesus Christ Jewish?
Dags.
Rosenthal was a primary instigator (person "A" in the original indictment). Rosenthal funded the operation. Rosenthal enjoyed the greatest financial benefit of the crimes.
Most of the banditos came clean when cornered, but Rosenthal lawyered up. Rosenthal violated conditions of his bail twice, and confronted a witness in the hallway of the courthouse.
Even in his statements at sentencing, Rosenthal continues to insist "I'm a good guy."
Wow so many with so many opinions on something they read on one of emma puta perez trevinos articles im sure, which means you dont know the whole story. You know what valley morning start wants you to know. Her reports were one sided cuz of the defamation lawsuit again vms. I was in court in corpus christi and in brownsville. Marc and i have never met but i wish i would have appoligized on the publics behalf. You see the "honorable" judge had favors.to pay in brownsville to the former DA yolanda de leon, peter zavaletta ( who are also being sued in the same defamation case with vms and yoli settled her part for $610,000.00) and the current brownsville mayor for throwing a bone to the judges wife diane dillard who has been paid thousands for a few hiurs of work as a real estate attorney for the city. She was hired by the mayor without due process to give others a chance at the cushy job. I went to court with the media and felt ashamed of who i was with. Oscar de la fuente got off cuz daddy former judge Sr. Is buds with andy hanen. See marc got 20 so the valleyites could get off easy.Ill never forget what EPT told me. " why throw away tye whole pot of beans when only the bottom burned"... yeah you just know what she wants you to know, and she won an award for her half truths.
DONT WORRY FOLKS THIS SLEEZEBAG BRINGING HIS OWN 20 YEAR SUPPLY OF BAR SOAPS ENOUGH TO DROP AROUND AND GET BACK SOME OF WHAT HE DID TO OTHERS ENJOY RC
So who introduced Marc to all these guys??? Where and who got everything started??
Too small of a sentence!!! Marc deserves a lot more, even life! he has been milking his girlfriend and fucking his buddies! Give the bastard More!
Esperame tanTito!
I was on the other side of a case against Rosenthal once, back in the 1990's. It was a domestic dispute. involving possessions but no marriage, that I think he was handling pro bono for a friend of his. We settled, eventually.
I kind of liked the guy. Except that he and his friend were weightlifters and it seemed to me that they were both into steroids. Inflated muscles, rigid bearing.... Maybe this is the sort of thing that steroid ego leads to.
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