Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
Former Google and Uber engineer Anthony Levandowski leaves federal court in San Jose, California, after a hearing in September 2019.
Anthony Levandowski, former Google engineer and a pioneer of self-driving car tech, agreed to plead guilty Thursday to stealing trade secrets from the internet giant.
Levandowski left Google in 2016 to start his own self-driving truck company, which was quickly acquired by Uber for $680 million. These actions set off a chain of events that led to Google's autonomous vehicle unit, Waymo, suing Uber over alleged theft of self-driving car trade secrets. That lawsuit settled in February 2018 with Uber agreeing to pay Waymo $245 million.
The prosecutors indicted Levandowski in August in a suit that involves 33 counts of theft and attempted theft of trade secrets from Google. The activities allegedly took place as he prepared to leave the search giant to build out Uber's self-driving car operation.
Levandowski pleaded guilty to one count of trade secret theft in an agreement in which federal prosecutors agree to drop the remaining charges, according to a filing with the US District Court of the Northern District of California. The plea carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
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Uber accuses Levandowski of fraud, refuses to pay $179M Google judgment:
Uber says it shouldn't be on the hook for a massive $179 million judgment owed to Google by Uber's former star engineer, Anthony Levandowski. Uber made that argument in a legal filing last week to a federal bankruptcy court in California. Uber's brief portrays the situation differently than Levandowski, who told the court last month that Uber was legally obligated to pay the award.
Levandowski joined Uber in 2016 after almost a decade at Google, where he had been a leading self-driving engineer. Uber bought Levandowski's months-old self-driving startup Otto for hundreds of millions of dollars, intending to make Levandowski and his team the core of Uber's fledgling self-driving car project.
But things went sour fast. Google sued Uber, alleging that Levandowski had downloaded thousands of confidential documents before his departure and had taken them to his new job. Fearing criminal prosecution for trade secret theft—fears that proved justified—Levandowski invoked the Fifth Amendment and refused to testify during the civil trial between Google and Uber.
Uber fired Levandowski and settled with Google. But Google continued to pursue Levandowski in arbitration, winning a $179 million award. Levandowski argues that Uber has an obligation to pay the judgment on his behalf under an indemnification deal Levandowski negotiated as part of the 2016 acquisition of his company.
But in its latest legal filing, Uber argues that it doesn't owe Levandowski anything because Levandowski used fraud to induce Uber to sign the indemnification agreement.
Previously:
- Ex-Uber Engineer Levandowski Pleads Guilty To Trade Secrets Theft
- Anthony Levandowski Ordered to Pay $179 Million to Google
Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Executive Grants of Clemency
Anthony Levandowski – President Trump granted a full pardon to Anthony Levandowski. This pardon is strongly supported by James Ramsey, Peter Thiel, Miles Ehrlich, Amy Craig, Michael Ovitz, Palmer Luckey, Ryan Petersen, Ken Goldberg, Mike Jensen, Nate Schimmel, Trae Stephens, Blake Masters, and James Proud, among others. Mr. Levandowski is an American entrepreneur who led Google's efforts to create self-driving technology. Mr. Levandowski pled guilty to a single criminal count arising from civil litigation. Notably, his sentencing judge called him a "brilliant, groundbreaking engineer that our country needs." Mr. Levandowski has paid a significant price for his actions and plans to devote his talents to advance the public good.
Wikipedia entry on pardon within the United States.
See also: Former Google engineer Anthony Levandowski among list of last-minute Trump pardons
Trump's last-minute pardons include Bannon, Lil Wayne and scores of others
Trump Reportedly Abandoned Pardons For Snowden And Assange
Trump declines to pardon Assange, Snowden, or 'Joe Exotic' – here's the 143 people he chose
Previously: Text Messages Between Uber's Travis Kalanick and Anthony Levandowski Released
The Fall of Uber CEO Travis Kalanick
Uber Shutting Down Self-Driving Truck Division
Ex-Uber Engineer Levandowski Pleads Guilty To Trade Secrets Theft
Uber Accuses Levandowski of Fraud, Refuses to Pay $179M Google Judgment
Ex-Googler Levandowski Gets 18 Months in Prison for Trade-Secret Theft
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 21 2020, @01:22PM (3 children)
Levandowski <------------------ {BOOK}
Why is he even allowed to settle? He pleaded guilty so they have /something/ on him. Just throw the friggin' book at the guy. It's not because he's got a crapton of money that he's some sort of angel (quite the opposite, actually). Don't let these people settle and get off with less than any less-wealthy individual would get hammered with.
(Score: 4, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Saturday March 21 2020, @02:07PM
There is an obverse to every coin. If the prosecution were very, very sure that they could get guilty verdicts, they wouldn't settle. They would charge full ahead, seeking maximum sentences, maximum fines and penalties, maximum restitution, everything. In a high stakes contest like this, neither side is certain of victory, so they dance around and around, seeking a compromise. This is the compromise.
“I have become friends with many school shooters” - Tampon Tim Walz
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 21 2020, @08:35PM
Not a great time to land in jail, what with this new virus. Harvey Weinstein is about to find out the same thing.
(Score: 1) by webnut77 on Sunday March 22 2020, @02:19PM
So he sold his newly formed company for $680 million, pleads guilty to one count, and gets a maximum of 10 years in prison.
So his jail time nets him $68 million/year? Check my maths. He could possibly get out in 5 years with good behavior.
Methinks there would be quite a few people that would take that deal if it was offered. You wouldn't have to work another day in your life.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 21 2020, @02:21PM (1 child)
But when jewgle does the stealing, it is business as usual. When the khazar jewish rats in israel steal atomic bomb secrets and sell to whoever is willing to pay, it is business as usual.
Punishment is only for regular humans. Khazar rats are above that with a rigged system where they control the judges, lawyers, prosecutors, politicians, central banks, media, ...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 21 2020, @04:53PM
Every. Time.
And then one day, for no reason at all, they voted Hortler into power...