Robert E. Coughlin
Encyclopedia
Robert E. Coughlin, II, is an American lawyer
and was formerly the Deputy Chief of Staff, Criminal Division, of the United States Department of Justice
. He was convicted in the aftermath of the Abramoff scandal.
, who in turn has been linked in media reports to the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal
. Coughlin's position in the Department of Justice placed him high in the chain of supervision of the staff investigating the scandal.
He pleaded guilty to conflict of interest on April 22, 2008. According to his plea, Kevin Ring took Coughlin out to meals 25 times, mostly at Abramoff's Signatures Restaurant
. Ring gave Coughlin 20 tickets to Abramoff's skyboxes on seven occasions to Washington Wizards and Washington Redskins games, as well as five tickets to three concerts and one round of golf while helping Kevin A. Ring
and his clients. In exchange for these gifts, worth $4,800 to $6,180, Coughlin helped Ring and Abramoff get a $16.3 million grant from the Justice Department to build a jail for Abramoff's client, the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
.
and a $2,000 fine.
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and was formerly the Deputy Chief of Staff, Criminal Division, of the United States Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
. He was convicted in the aftermath of the Abramoff scandal.
Abramoff scandal
Coughlin resigned from the Department of Justice 6 April 2007. A media report linked Coughlin's resignation to his friendship with Kevin A. RingKevin A. Ring
Kevin A. Ring is a former lobbyist and Republican Congressional staffer. He was a figure in the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal scandal. After leaving Team Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig in 2005, he joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP law firm in Washington, DC...
, who in turn has been linked in media reports to the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal
Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal
The Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
. Coughlin's position in the Department of Justice placed him high in the chain of supervision of the staff investigating the scandal.
He pleaded guilty to conflict of interest on April 22, 2008. According to his plea, Kevin Ring took Coughlin out to meals 25 times, mostly at Abramoff's Signatures Restaurant
Signatures Restaurant
Signatures Restaurant is the Washington D.C. restaurant opened by Jack Abramoff. Expensive and lavishly appointed with expensive memorabilia, Villeroy & Boch chargers and Christofle flatware, Signatures was used by Abramoff in coordination with his skyboxes and foreign trips to spend money...
. Ring gave Coughlin 20 tickets to Abramoff's skyboxes on seven occasions to Washington Wizards and Washington Redskins games, as well as five tickets to three concerts and one round of golf while helping Kevin A. Ring
Kevin A. Ring
Kevin A. Ring is a former lobbyist and Republican Congressional staffer. He was a figure in the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal scandal. After leaving Team Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig in 2005, he joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP law firm in Washington, DC...
and his clients. In exchange for these gifts, worth $4,800 to $6,180, Coughlin helped Ring and Abramoff get a $16.3 million grant from the Justice Department to build a jail for Abramoff's client, the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians is one of three federally recognized tribes of Choctaw Indians. On April 20, 1945, the tribe organized under the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. Also in 1945 the Choctaw Indian Reservation was created in Neshoba and surrounding counties...
.
Sentencing
In November 2009, he was sentenced to a month in a halfway house, three years of probationProbation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
and a $2,000 fine.