Post-Enron Law Snags Fisherman
A fisherman who was convicted of destroying undersized red grouper is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse his conviction. The underlying issues of Yates v. United States are an example of what the business community and the criminal defense bar are calling the "overcriminalization epidemic." John Yates was convicted of "shredding" a grouper, a federal violation of the "anti-shredding" provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
"It's an issue that brings people together from all walks of the political spectrum," said Partner William Shepherd, who filed an amicus brief for the criminal defenders. "John Yates got caught up in it, but it could just as easily have been your cousin or your mom."