Justices Consider Reach of Money Laundering Law
The U.S. Supreme Court considered yesterday whether hiding money under the floorboards of a car headed for the Mexican border was a violation of the money laundering law.
A majority of justices appeared to conclude the answer was no, the New York Times reports. Their comments during oral arguments appeared to embrace the more traditional idea that money laundering consists of hiding money to conceal its origins and create the appearance of legitimate wealth.
“On the government’s theory,” said Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, “anyone who transports hidden money to get it out of the country, who drives the car, just the driver, is a money launderer.”
The case is Cuellar v. United States. It is one of two pending cases before the high court that deal with money laundering.
The other, U.S. v. Santos, asks whether the ban on money laundering applies if a criminal operation didn’t turn a profit.
