Steve has vast experience in complex criminal law matters, including internal investigations, grand jury investigations and trial practice. Clients include public companies, executives and professionals. Engagements have involved the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, tax fraud, international commercial bribery, trade secret theft, antitrust cartels, environmental crime, health care, and government contracting fraud. Steve has repeatedly prevented indictment of clients, even those with target status. When cases have had to be tried, the outcomes have been extraordinary, including full acquittals. On behalf of public company clients, he has resolved extremely difficult criminal matters without charges or follow-on enforcement actions being filed. Before entering private practice, Steve was a 17-year veteran of the United States Attorney's Office in Chicago, where he served as Chief of the Special Prosecutions Division and Chief of the Banking and Financial Institutions Fraud Unit. He received national awards from the Department of Justice, and personal commendations from both the Attorney General of the United States and the Director of the FBI. He has been peer-reviewed and selected to the Illinois Super Lawyers list in "Criminal Defense: White Collar," is Chambers-rated, and has been profiled in Vanity Fair magazine.
Qualifikationen
Auszeichnungen
- Selected through peer review for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© for Criminal Defense: White-Collar, 2021-2024
- Selected to the Illinois Super Lawyers list for Criminal Defense: White Collar, 2020-2021
- Selected as one of Chicago's AV Preeminent-Top Rated Lawyers® from Martindale-Hubbell, representing the highest rating from his peers on his legal ability and professional ethics.
- Vanity Fair magazine profiled him as a "Cook County courthouse legend."
- The London Daily Telegraph has called him the "Hercule Poirot of the computer age."
- The Chicago Sun-Times compared his cross-examination of an expert witness with the best of Perry Mason.
- Received multiple DOJ national awards.
Civil Rights, Pro Bono & Public Engagements
- As an assistant U.S. Attorney and member of the Civil Rights Enforcement Unit, filed two lawsuits under the 1964 Civil Rights Act Public Accommodation section against a business requiring multiple photo identification cards for African-Americans as a condition to admission to their establishments. These were filed during an era where virtually no cases were brought under the Public Accommodation section.
- Former Chief, Special Prosecutions Division, United States Attorney's Office in Chicago. In charge of approximately forty senior prosecutors responsible for complex financial crimes, criminal civil rights, health care fraud, political corruption, labor union racketeering, organized crime drug enforcement, and certain national security related matters. Held top secret security clearance.
- Prosecuted several federal criminal civil rights cases against police officers charged with excessive use of force.
- Appointed by Illinois Governor as Commissioner of the Illinois Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission, which is tasked with investigating and making findings regarding torture claims by Chicago police officers (pro bono).
- Appointed by Democratic Illinois House Majority Leader as special counsel to a Committee of the Illinois House of Representatives Investigating Misuse of Supplemental Funding for Children in Poverty (pro bono).
- Representing an inmate on death row in Alabama in post-conviction proceedings (pro bono).