On November 27, 2018, U.S. District Judge Kimba M. Wood in the Southern District of New York sentenced Steven Brown (“Brown”), a producer of Christian-themed films, to sixty-three (63) months in prison for stealing $12 million from investors over an eight-year time span.
In addition to Brown’s 63-month prison term, Judge Wood has ordered Brown to forfeit more than $673,000 in cash, as well as his property located in Santa Monica, California.
Judge Wood found that, “His victims, in some cases, have been left destitute,” and responded to defense counsel’s argument that Brown is a first-time offender by declaring “his crimes took place from 2009 into 2017 and resulted in substantial civil litigation before he was criminally charged…He kept doing it year after year after year…There is a significant possibility that he may re-offend.”
Two of Brown’s co-defendants, James D. Williams and Gerald Seppala, entered guilty pleas last year. Williams is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 18.
The government is represented by Katherine Reilly, Noah Solowiejczyk and Ryan Finkel of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
Brown is represented by Walter Mack and David Rivera of Doar Rieck Kaley & Mack.
The case is U.S. v. Williams et al., case number 1:16-cr-00436, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
* Lowe & Associates (“The Firm”) is a boutique entertainment and business litigation firm located in Beverly Hills, California. The Firm has extensive experience handling cases involving entertainment law, having provided top quality legal services to its clients since 1991. The Firm is recognized in multiple publications for its many achievements and high ethical standards, including Martindale-Hubbell and Super Lawyers.
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