Fayette County Attorney Charged With Defrauding Clients
JAN 10, 2022 | REPUBLISHED BY LIT: JAN 12, 2022
Are you not supposed to put thieves in jail when they plead guilty? @TheJusticeDept @MDPAnewshttps://t.co/pRxuxFVRTB pic.twitter.com/J69PnM47Gc
— lawsinusa (@lawsinusa) April 13, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, February 10, 2022
Fayette County Attorney Pleads Guilty To Defrauding Clients
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that on February 9, 2022, John William “JW” Eddy, age 39, of Fayette County, Pennsylvania pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud for misappropriating funds from clients of his law practice between 2016 and 2020.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Eddy ran a private law practice, Eddy Law Office.
As an attorney representing members of the public in the practice of law, Eddy was required to maintain a trust account for client funds, also known as an Interest on Lawyer Trust Account or “IOLTA.”
This account was to be used for the securing of client funds, such as proceeds from legal settlements, fees advanced for services not yet performed, or money for court fees. At his guilty plea before United States District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo, Eddy admitted that between 2016 and 2020 he misappropriated $242,975.89 of client funds entrusted to him.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma is prosecuting the case.
The maximum penalty under federal law for wire fraud is 20 years’ imprisonment.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
United States District Court
Middle District of Pennsylvania (Harrisburg)
CRIMINAL DOCKET FOR CASE #: 1:22-cr-00007-SHR All Defendants
| Case title: USA v. Eddy | Date Filed: 01/10/2022 |
| Assigned to: Honorable Sylvia H. Rambo | ||
| Defendant (1) | ||
| John William Eddy also known as John Edward Eddy |
represented by | Steven C Townsend Eddy Townsend, Gravina & Bendik 564 Forbes Avenue, Manor Building Penthouse 564 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15219 412-281-5336 Fax: 412-281-3537 Email: stownsend@pghlaw.com LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED Designation: Retained |
| Pending Counts | Disposition | |
| 18:1343 FRAUD BY WIRE, RADIO, OR TELEVISION (1) |
||
| Highest Offense Level (Opening) | ||
| Felony | ||
| Terminated Counts | Disposition | |
| None | ||
| Highest Offense Level (Terminated) | ||
| None | ||
| Complaints | Disposition | |
| None |
| Plaintiff | ||
| USA | represented by | Ravi R. Sharma United States Attorney’s Office, MDPA 228 Walnut Street, Suite 220 P.O. Box 11754 Harrisburg, PA 17108 717.221.4482 Email: ravi.sharma@usdoj.gov LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED Designation: Assistant US Attorney |
| Date Filed | # | Docket Text |
|---|---|---|
| 01/10/2022 | 1 | INFORMATION as to John William Eddy (1) count 1. (rw) (Entered: 01/10/2022) |
| 01/10/2022 | 2 | Criminal Cover Sheet (Access Restricted to Court Users) as to John William Eddy. (rw) (Entered: 01/10/2022) |
| 01/10/2022 | 3 | PLEA AGREEMENT as to John William Eddy. (rw) (Entered: 01/10/2022) |
| 01/10/2022 | 4 | PRAECIPE to Issue Summons. (rw) (Entered: 01/10/2022) |
| 01/11/2022 | 5 | Summons Issued in case as to John William Eddy. Arraignment/IA/Guilty plea set for 2/9/2022 at 1:00 PM in Harrisburg – Courtroom 3 before Honorable Sylvia H. Rambo. Information, Plea Agreement and Special admission form sent via U.S. Mail to Steven Townsend, Esq.(ma) (Entered: 01/11/2022) |
| 02/09/2022 | 7 | RULE 5 NOTICE re: Brady disclosure obligations as to defendant John William Eddy. Signed by Honorable Sylvia H. Rambo on 2/9/22. (ma) (Entered: 02/10/2022) |
| 02/09/2022 | 8 | WAIVER OF INDICTMENT by John William Eddy (ma) (Entered: 02/10/2022) |
| 02/09/2022 | 9 | GUILTY PLEA ENTERED to the 1-cnt information as to John William Eddy (ma) (Entered: 02/10/2022) |
| 02/09/2022 | 10 | ORDER accepting the plea of Guilty to the 1-cnt information as to John William Eddy. Signed by Honorable Sylvia H. Rambo on 2/9/22. (ma) (Entered: 02/10/2022) |
| 02/16/2022 | 11 | ORDER Setting Conditions of Release Signed by Honorable Sylvia H. Rambo on 2/16/22. (ma) (Entered: 02/16/2022) |
| 03/08/2022 | 12 |
COURT REPORTER NOTES re John William Eddy filed by Wendy Yinger of VIA WEBEX Arraignment/Guilty Plea before Judge Rambo on 2/9/2022. In accordance with 28 U.S.C. Section 753(b), I certify that these original notes are a true and correct record of proceedings in the United States District Court for the Middle District of PA before Judge Rambo on 2/9/2022. By s/ Wendy Yinger. (Court Reporter Notes are viewable by court staff only). (Yinger, Wendy) (Entered: 03/08/2022) |
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that John William “JW” Eddy, age 39, of Fayette County, Pennsylvania was charged by criminal information with one count of wire fraud for misappropriating funds from clients of his law practice between 2016 and 2020.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the information alleges that Eddy was required to maintain a trust account for client funds, also known as an Interest on Lawyer Trust Account or “IOLTA.”
This account was to be used for the securing of client funds, such as proceeds from legal settlements, fees advanced for services not yet performed, or money for court fees.
The information alleges that Eddy misappropriated $242,975.89 of client funds during this time-period.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma is prosecuting the case.
Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for wire fraud is 20 years’ imprisonment. This charge may also carry a fine and a term of supervised release following imprisonment. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
# # #
Topic(s):
Financial Fraud
Component(s):
USAO – Pennsylvania, Middle
Updated January 10, 2022
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