“is not illegal, falsifying business records is.”
Apparently, they used provisions in the Sarbanes Oxley Act to trump up this charge. If they were trying to conceal the payment, they could have picked a dozen other better choices than legal expenses.
Anyone who has been audited knows there is a high level of scrutiny placed on all costs categorized as legal expenses in the general ledger. It’s the last place you’d put a charge if you really wanted to try to hide it.
"Better?" You think Bragg and Merchan would not twist whatever they picked into a "crime?"