News

News

September 1, 2025

Trump Administration Approves 600 Military Lawyers as Immigration Judges

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has authorized the deployment of up to 600 military lawyers to the Justice Department to serve as temporary immigration judges, according to an August 27 memo obtained by the Associated Press.

The plan calls for sending groups of 150 attorneys, both military and civilian, with the first round expected to be identified by next week and deployed “as soon as practicable,” according to the memo.

The Department of Justice referred Newsweek to the Pentagon for comment, with the Department of Defense yet to respond.

Why It Matters

The Department of Justice oversees the immigration court system, where judges determine whether immigrants are eligible to remain in the United States or not. The system has been facing a backlog for some time, reaching an all-time high in July as some judges left and recruitment slowed under the Trump administration.

Man pleads guilty in California to $500,000 EBT fraud, illegal reentry, and asylum fraud

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced, August 4, that Marius Marian pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining over $500,000 in EBT funds, illegal reentry after an aggravated felony conviction, and making false statements on his asylum application.

Marian, 39, a Romanian citizen, was charged July 23, 2025, and pleaded guilty to all three counts.

He admitted that from March 2, 2024, through June 3, 2025, he fraudulently obtained EBT funds by using over 601 unique victim EBT account identifiers.

The California Department of Social Services distributes federal EBT benefits.

Marian used skimmers on ATMs and point-of-sale machines to steal victims’ EBT card information. He encoded stolen EBT data onto fake cards to withdraw funds fraudulently from Northern California ATMs.

As a result, Marian withdrew $507,916 and intended to steal $611,845 more in EBT funds. He admitted his scheme was sophisticated and harmed at least 25 victims financially.

Faces up to 30 years for bank fraud

In addition, Marian admitted submitting false asylum statements to Homeland Security around April 27, 2023. He failed to disclose his 2019 bank fraud conviction and prior U.S. deportation.

He later reentered the U.S. illegally.

Marian remains in federal custody. Sentencing is set for October 20, 2025, before U.S. District judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin.

He faces up to 30 years for bank fraud, 10 years for illegal reentry, and 20 years for asylum fraud, along with possible fines.

Former CNBC financial analyst sentenced to 5 years for $3 Million investor fraud in California

A former California resident and frequent financial TV guest, who became a fugitive after scamming investors, was sentenced, August 4, to 60 months in federal prison for defrauding millions, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

James Arthur McDonald Jr., 53, of San Gabriel Valley, led two Los Angeles-based companies as CEO and chief investment officer: Hercules Investments LLC and Index Strategy Advisors Inc. (ISA).

McDonald frequently appeared as an analyst on the CNBC financial television news network. 

Misused $174,610 at a Porsche dealership

In late 2020, McDonald lost tens of millions of Hercules client dollars by taking a risky short position betting against the health of the U.S. economy after the presidential election.

McDonald predicted the pandemic and election would trigger major selloffs and a stock market drop. When the market didn’t drop, Hercules clients lost $30–$40 million. By December 2020, Hercules clients were complaining to staff about account losses.

In early 2021, McDonald raised millions from investors for Hercules, misrepresenting fund use and hiding the company’s prior losses.

As part of the raise, McDonald received $675,000 from one investor group on March 9, 2021. He misused the funds, including $174,610 at a Porsche dealership and $109,512 to his Arcadia landlord.

McDonald caused over $3 million in losses

McDonald also defrauded ISA clients, using less than half of the $3.6 million raised for trading. 

Instead, McDonald commingled ISA client funds with personal accounts, spending on luxury cars, rent, credit cards, Hercules expenses, and making Ponzi-like payments to clients. 

Prosecutors say McDonald caused over $3 million in losses.

McDonald was a fugitive until June 2024

McDonald skipped an SEC testimony in November 2021 over fraud allegations and remained a fugitive until his June 2024 arrest in Port Orchard, Washington.

McDonald has been in custody since then.

At his Washington hideout, law enforcement found a fake D.C. license with McDonald’s photo and the name “Brian Thomas,” according to court documents.

In September 2022, the SEC charged McDonald and Hercules with securities violations. In April 2024, Judge Percy Anderson held them liable and ordered millions in penalties and disgorgement.

McDonald pleaded guilty on April 7 to one count of securities fraud.

He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer, who will set a restitution hearing at a later date.