@bonjourami wrote:"While I understand to some degree that some may be tired of hearing the same information that has been known for a while rehashed, the fact is it's still far from being a settled matter as far as the courts are concerned and there could still be more of the story to be told."
I thought it was settled with their recent three million dollar settlement? Or are the Steiners still trying for another civil settlement? But, maybe this is, as they say on SNL, 'the thing that wouldnt leave'.
@bonjourami it's not "another" civil case, it's the same one they have been fighting for all along and there has been no settlement in that case.
On the criminal side - there were 6 eBay employees and 1 contractor who all pleaded guilty to their parts in the federal felonies that were committed. 6 of those 7 have been sentenced (anywhere from a year of house arrest to over 5 years in federal prison depending on the role they played) and 1 is still awaiting sentencing because he was diagnosed with cancer so his sentencing hearing has been postponed multiple times but is now finally scheduled for July.
Also on the criminal side, eBay Inc was being investigated as to its culpability as a corporation with federal crimes related to the conduct of their employees.
The Department of Justice worked out a deal that defers prosecution of the corporation for those crimes if eBay meets all the requirements agreed to in that deal - which were basically 3 years of enhanced corporate compliance monitoring and a $3 Million fine.
Importantly, as in most criminal cases whether at the local, state, or federal level, those charges are brought by the government entity with jurisdiction and any fines are paid to the government, not to the victims.
Think of it like if you got a ticket for reckless driving after you caused a car accident....the money (fine) you pay for that ticket gets paid to the court (government) and goes into various law enforcement or community funds, not to the person whose car you hit.
The $3 Million eBay paid as part of that deal to avoid further criminal prosecution was paid to the US Treasury, not the Steiners. Also as part of the deal, eBay had to agree to/acknowledge the facts of the case (or Information) and their culpability/responsibility for their employee's conduct just like the individuals who pleaded guilty had to "cop" to their part in the crimes as well.
Excerpt from the actual agreement:
In addition to the Department of Justice pursuing criminal charges against the eBay employees most directly involved and against the company itself, the Steiners also filed a civil lawsuit against those same employees, the company and then CEO Devin Wenig, Chief Communications Officer Steve Wymer, VP Global Operations Wendy Jones and Progressive F.O.R.C.E Concepts LLC (the security company through which one of those charged criminally was contracted to work for eBay).
That civil case was filed by the Steiners on July 21, 2021 and has been ongoing since that time with no settlements or judgements yet paid to the Steiners. There is a civil trial date set for March 2025 if no settlement is agreed to before then.
