Let’s remember when US Attorney Jenny Durkan announced no charges would be filed against Washington Mutual, on this day in 2011 (August 5)
Washington Mutual was the largest bank to failure in US history. They were knowingly putting people in mortgages they couldn’t afford. If you’ve read Kristen Grind’s book The Lost Bank, you know that WaMu’s criminality is long and well-documented.
If you were following the case, you might be surprised to see that the US Attorney from the Western district of Washington state did not prosecute anyone. That US Attorney is now mayor of Seattle.
As the Puget Sound Business Journal wrote at the time:
A multi-year criminal investigation into Washington Mutual has ended with no charges filed, according to a report today from the Wall Street Journal. The newspaper cited people “familiar with the probe.”
According to the report, the case has been dormant for months. It’s not clear why it has been dropped.
…
According to a statement released this afternoon from Durkan:
“Based upon its investigation, the Department of Justice has concluded that the evidence does not meet the exacting standards for criminal charges in connection with the bank’s failure.”
Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Jesse Eisinger wrote a book about the prosecutors who let bankers off the hook for the financial crisis the banks caused. It’s called The Chickenshit Club. Jenny Durkan is very, very much a member.
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