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And It Just Gets Better for Browns Fans


HoosierCat

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I did not watch the game, but I question the QB change.  The first kid hadn't even thrown a pick, I think.  McCown went in and immediately pitched one to the other team, a long and honored Browns tradition.  

The Browns 2-0-16 season continues!  Gonna wreck some top draft picks career next year for sure!  

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I'll excerpt three paragraphs below from the article on pft that Hoosier cited in the post previous to this one.  The paragraphs are a quote from Jason LaCanfora of CBS Sports.  

Three delicious, fall down laughing, sweet, wonderful paragraphs:

 

According to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, Horton’s status and Jackson’s decision to bench rookie quarterback Cody Kessler last week have led to “heightened tension” within the Browns organization.

There’s also mention that owner Jimmy Haslam and his wife Dee have become increasingly hands-on with the operation, including a number of non-football departments reporting directly to them.

“You basically have a husband and wife in charge of various areas they don’t really understand — football, coaching, scouting, analytics, ticketing, marketing,” a team source told La Canfora. “And that’s the way they want it.”

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Well, it worked real good for the Bengals in the 1990s... /sarcasm

Oh, and just to follow up on the item above, now we get this:

Quote

Last week, Browns coach Hue Jackson benched quarterback Cody Kessler during a loss to the Ravens. This week, Jackson seems to be second-guessing that decision.

“Cody has done some good things, too,” Jackson said, via Cleveland.com. “Maybe we’ve been a little too harsh on him that way. He’s made some jumps in some areas.

Translation: mom 'n' pop weren't happy with Hue for benching Kessler. I'm increasingly of the opinion that Hue will be gone in January.

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From Haslem's wiki page:

 

In April 2013, the FBI executed a search warrant and affidavit detailing a five-year fraud scheme by the Pilot Flying J chain. The company paid restitution to customers and agreed to pay a $92 million penalty pursuant to a Criminal Enforcement Agreement.[8]

 

Now someone please explain to me:

1.  What is a "Criminal Enforcement Agreement"?  I was a prosecutor for 7 years, in that time I prosecuted hundreds of cases, including over 100 jury trials.  I have never heard of a "Criminal Enforcement Agreement." 

2.  How can you pay 92 million dollars for a crime for which you have never even been indicted?  I understand fines, court costs, restitution, reimbursements.  All those are assessed as part of a penalty for a crime once you are convicted.  This dude was never even indicted.  He was not the subject of a civil action from a citizen, or a forfeiture action from the government.  Just what legal mechanism prompted him to pay 92 million dollars to the government?

3.  I read the transcript of the tape the FBI had of Haslam talking about the fraud scheme.  He was laughing about it, he called it some obscene name, something like the "fuck 'em over program,"  In a country where you can catch a bullet for not having a front license plate, where is the indictment for a multi-million dollar scheme that defrauded small businesses of millions of dollars?  

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Well, teh google isn't super-helpful in this case, but apparently a "criminal enforcement agreement" is a relatively recent development modeled on the kind of enforcement agreements you might see between a regulatory agency (like the EPA) and a company that violated that agency's regulations. There's a little bit of info in this wsj story.

Quote

The agreement doesn't end the probe that has haunted Pilot since agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service descended on its headquarters in April 2013, carrying off computers and documents.

As part of the pact, the company agrees "to cooperate fully and actively" with federal law enforcement "in any and all matters relating to its investigation of fraudulent conduct involving the sale of diesel fuel," according to the agreement. This includes disclosing "truthfully and completely" any activities of its present and former officers and employees that might be related to the fraud, the agreement states.

Pilot won't be prosecuted as long as it complies with the terms of the agreement.

Lisa Kern Griffin, a Duke University law professor who has written about such agreements, said "it's pretty standard not to exempt prosecution" for individuals in the company and "it's entirely possible that individuals will get charged" after such an agreement.

If the corporation cooperates fully with prosecutors, it could "diminish the government's interest in pursuing individual prosecutions," but such cooperation often gives prosecutors new information that helps them build further cases. "It can cut the other way," she said.

Despite those last two paragraphs, it sounds to me mostly like, if you're a big corporation and/or super-wealthy guy, you can pay to make criminal charges go away. Just don't piss them off again. Welcome to America.

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1 hour ago, HoosierCat said:

. I'm increasingly of the opinion that Hue will be gone in January.

If so, time to hire him as our new head coach.  Marvin can stick around in whatever capacity he wants.  I'd take him as defacto DC right now.  Hue as head coach would pretty much be our OC anyway.  

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  • 3 months later...

Interesting...now reports are that Cleveland is shopping Osweiler and is willing to eat at least half of his $16 million cap hit if a team will give them a 2018 third...thinking is they need it for a package to give to NE for Garappolo.

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  • 4 months later...

Memo from the Stuff Hollywood Screenewriters Would Reject Because It was Too Unbelievable to be True Dept: the Cleveland Browns stadium is literally a gigantic dumpster fire waiting to happen:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2017/07/20/browns-stadium-may-be-a-fire-hazard/

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8 hours ago, HoosierCat said:

Memo from the Stuff Hollywood Screenewriters Would Reject Because It was Too Unbelievable to be True Dept: the Cleveland Browns stadium is literally a gigantic dumpster fire waiting to happen:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2017/07/20/browns-stadium-may-be-a-fire-hazard/

True story - last time I used my sister's season tix to go to that stadium was 2000.  Saw the Ravens destroy them.  Cleveland never got past the 50 yard line the whole game.  Their liquored-up fans didn't even give a shit, just like they wouldn't care if that place went up in flames.  They welcome any excuse to riot and engage in violent and drunken civil disobedience.  Remember the beer bottle thunderstorm those refs had to endure?  How about blow up disco records on dime beer night at a tribe game in Cleveland Stadium?  They're crazy.  That stadium turning into an inferno would be like Christmas to them.

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On 7/22/2017 at 0:22 PM, BengalszoneBilly said:

And to think back in the '60's I was down with the Browns. Could it be this led to my later indiscretions in life?

Absolutely. I think it's safe to blame the Browns for everything.

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