As a former federal prosecutor in Chicago, I am well acquainted with the phrase “takedowns.” For the unwary, a subject-area “takedown” is a practice used by federal prosecutors to send a message to a given industry. Prosecutors investigate and prepare to charge cases in a given industry sector and then release the charges nationally on the same day along with a press release. The idea is that such public “takedowns” serve as a deterrent to future criminal activity in the industry. For example, almost every April 15th, prosecutors across the country release charges in dozens of tax-fraud cases.
Recently, this practice has expanded into the healthcare industry. See more on the The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General website. In June 2016, there was the largest healthcare fraud takedown in DOJ history – prosecutors charged more than 300 defendants in 36 federal judicial districts (and this does not even include civil fraud investigations).
To read the full text of this blog post, please visit the Duane Morris White-Collar Criminal Law Blog.