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Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's DOJ puts companies on notice: Don't evade tariffs
The Justice Department is putting American companies on notice that they could be prosecuted if they chose to evade President Trump's tariffs, even as the legality of the president's "Liberation Day" duties remain unsettled in US courts. The message came in a DOJ announcement earlier this month stipulating that prosecutors would step up investigations into suspiciously classified imports and charge those who misidentify products with fraud. 'While the DOJ has always taken some customs cases, this is a different, more aggressive, visible stance than they usually would,' said Thompson Coburn trade lawyer Robert Shapiro. Read more: 5 ways to tariff-proof your finances The plan — to be carried out by the DOJ's new Market, Government, and Consumer Fraud Unit — marks a shift in enforcement tactics from prior administrations that relied mostly on policing misconduct through administrative proceedings, even during Trump's first term in office. The new Trump administration instead wants to prioritize criminal charges against companies and individuals that try to evade US tariffs. The overarching strategy was first outlined by Matthew R. Galeotti, head of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, who wrote in a May memo that an increasing focus on white collar crime would include "trade and customs fraudsters, including those who commit tariff evasion." At the same time, the Trump administration finds itself in the unusual position of defending the legality of the duties it pledges to enforce. Oral arguments in a federal lawsuit challenging the president's tariffs are set to take place before the US Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., this Thursday. The small business importers challenging the legal standing of the duties already proved it was possible to temporarily derail Trump's global tariffs with a lower court victory in May. In a separate challenge, two toy manufacturers are scheduled to make their own arguments against Trump's tariffs before the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Sept. 30, following their own lower court victory. 'We're going to raise the ante' Tariff violations can be prosecuted under civil or criminal laws. However, even fraud cases were often handled administratively by past administrations, according to Shapiro. 'I think the administration is just saying we're going to raise the ante on this,' Shapiro said. University of Kansas School of Law professor Raj Bhala said laws against customs fraud have long been in force, but the appetite for the DOJ and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to clamp down on violations has increased. Historically, Bhala and other trade lawyers said, prosecutors focused government resources on suspected tariff violations by US adversaries such as China, Iran, and North Korea, and particularly on export controls meant to keep controlled items from shipping to those countries. Producer-exporters, especially in China and other high-tariff regions, have been using evasion techniques for decades, mostly to skirt anti-dumping and countervailing duty orders, Bhala said. But now, under more imposing tariffs, incentives to evade duties have spiked 'enormously.' 'What is clear is that a lot of companies are looking for a way to limit the impact of the duties,' Shapiro said. In this new tariff and enforcement environment, trade experts suspect that corporate America and its trading partners are on high alert. Erika Trujillo, a trade attorney with customs risk management firm SEIA Compliance Technologies, said the shift toward more enforcement happening at the DOJ and less through administrative procedures could increase politically motivated targeting of companies viewed as adverse to the Trump administration's interests. 'I do think trade restrictions were used as both a sword and a shield for foreign companies, or in terms of dealing with international trade,' Trujillo said. Common tariff evasion techniques include misclassifying goods, falsely labeling a product's country of origin, making minor modifications to a product while it's in a lower-tariff jurisdiction to pass it off as manufactured there, and transhipping goods through lower-tariff jurisdictions. Read more: The latest news and updates on Trump's tariffs 'It's hard to imagine that any well-run company that has supply chains stretching across the globe — particularly in higher-tariff jurisdictions like China or Cambodia — would not be having vigorous discussions to ensure every step in the supply chain is properly documented and audited,' Bhala said. Bhala cautions that the stakes are high for importers subject to US jurisdiction. 'They're the importer of record and they're the ones who are liable for the tariffs,' he said. 'And false declarations are what we call 'go to jail stuff.'' For fraud, fines can also be assessed, up to the domestic value of the merchandise. For civil violations made based on negligent actions, maximum penalties are two times the underpayment of duties, in addition to original duties. For violations based on gross negligence, penalties increase to four times the underpayment of duties. For businesses looking to assess their risk, US Customs maintains an electronic system called the Automated Commercial Environment (ACT) that allows importers to view what their classification data looks like to customs. Small and midsize companies may find it more difficult to evaluate their compliance risks compared to multinational firms. 'If you're an SME, you probably have one or two lawyers, and they're not necessarily trade specialists,' Bhala said. Plus, there are different rules for thousands of products. For example, a typical NAFTA good, he explained, traverses the US-Canada border roughly four times. 'It's really difficult for companies of that size to be dealing with this,' Trujillo said. One major challenge is finding affordable internal expertise. 'Almost every company I know is actively hiring for both customs and export controls, and sanctions. You're basically stuck going to law firms or other external consultancy, and the small and medium-sized firms are maybe not going to have the budget to pay $1,100 an hour.' Read more: What Trump's tariffs mean for the economy and your wallet For certain suspected violations like those made by mistake, Shapiro said it doesn't make economic sense for the DOJ to get involved. 'They don't have the manpower for it,' he said. But a new enforcement policy seems to fit the Trump administration's broader tariff agenda, he added. 'If you're going to have this tariff policy, you're going to have to take a more aggressive stance, because it's a huge ocean of imports, and it's very hard for customs to enforce against everyone.' Alexis Keenan is a legal reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow Alexis on X @alexiskweed. Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices
New York Post
20 minutes ago
- New York Post
Sen. John Kennedy weighs in on Park Ave skyscraper shooting: ‘We don't need more gun control, we need more idiot control'
Sen. John Kennedy dismissed the idea of tightening up gun laws — instead suggesting that the city brings back the stop-and-frisk tactic to combat gun violence. The Louisiana Republican weighed in on the discourse shortly after a crazed gunman stormed a Midtown skyscraper before killing a brave NYPD officer and three others Monday. Appearing on Fox News, Kennedy said that 'all you can do in a time like this is be sorry' for the victims, before anticipating that some of his colleagues will be advocating for increased gun control measures as a result of the massacre. Advertisement 7 Sen. John Kennedy suggested that New York City brings back the stop-and-frisk tactic to combat gun violence. Fox News 'On Capitol Hill, probably beginning in the morning, there'll be the inevitable call by some of my colleagues for more gun control laws,' Kennedy (R-La.) said on Sean Hannity's show Monday. 'We've got hundreds of gun control laws, Sean. Maybe thousands. We don't need more gun control, we need more idiot control, and I don't know exactly how to do that.' Advertisement The shooter, identified as Las Vegas resident Shane Tamura stormed into the 44-story building — which headquarters Blackstone and the NFL — armed with a rifle and opened fire at around 6:30 p.m. during the evening rush. The 27-year-old unleashed his rampage after setting foot in the lobby before ultimately turning the gun on himself. 7 'We don't need more gun control, we need more idiot control,' Kennedy said. James Keivom 7 On Monday, a crazed gunman stormed a Midtown skyscraper before killing a brave NYPD officer and three others. Obtained by NY Post Advertisement 7 The shooter stormed into the 44-story building — which headquarters Blackstone and the NFL — armed with a rifle and opened fire at around 6:30 p.m. Christopher Sadowski 'I don't want to hear anyone feeling sorry for this guy who did this,' Kennedy said of the shooter. 'I believe there's objective evil in this world, and we saw it today. I'm just sorry.' Kennedy also floated the idea of bringing back the stop-and-frisk policy. 'The other thing that, frankly, New York's going to have to face, is the issue of whether we should bring back more aggressive stop and frisk, which is a perfectly legal law enforcement tactic,' he added. Advertisement NYC Midtown shooting timeline NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch provided a timeline of events leading up to Monday's mass shooting: Reports of the shooting at 345 Park Avenue started coming in at around 6:28 p.m. The shooter, Shane Tamura, 27, was seen on surveillance footage getting out of a double parked black BMW between 51st and 52nd Street, with an M4 rifle. He then walks towards the skyscraper, enters the lobby and turns right, where he shot police officer Didarul Islam, 36, dead. Tamura then gunned down a woman cowering behind a pillar in the lobby, as he sprayed more bullets and walked toward the elevator bank — where he shot dead a security guard crouching at his desk. One more man reported being shot and injured in the lobby. He was in critical but stable condition. The gunman allowed a woman to walk out of the elevators unharmed, before heading up to the 33rd floor, where building owner Rudin Properties' offices are located, 'and begins to walk the floor, firing as he traveled.' One man was shot and killed on that floor. 'He then proceeds down a hallway and shoots himself in the chest,' ending his rampage. It's unclear how long the mayhem lasted. Tisch posted on X at 7:52 p.m.: 'the scene has been contained and the lone shooter has been neutralized.' Elsewhere, Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) spoke out about the 'tragic and horrifying' mass shooting. 'The murder of a brave New York City police officer and several innocent civilians is tragic and horrifying,' the House Minority Leader said in a statement. 7 Kennedy said that 'all you can do in a time like this is be sorry' for the victims. Fox News 7 The 27-year-old unleashed his rampage after setting foot in the lobby before ultimately turning the gun on himself. James Keivom 7 Front cover of the New York Post on July 29, 2025. 'We mourn their loss and stand with their families during this time of need. Our prayers and gratitude are also with those heroic law enforcement officers and first responders who put their lives on the line and selflessly rushed to the scene to save others.' 'Mass shootings are a plague. The gun violence epidemic continues to afflict our country and now has shattered lives in our great City. The time has come for decisive action,' Jeffries added.
Boston Globe
20 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Russia kills 21 civilians in Ukraine as the Kremlin remains defiant over Trump threats
Trump said Monday he is giving Russian President Vladimir Putin 10 to 12 days to stop the killing in Ukraine after three years of war, moving up a 50-day deadline he had given the Russian leader two weeks ago. The move meant Trump wants peace efforts to make progress by Aug. 7-9. Advertisement Trump has repeatedly rebuked Putin for talking about ending the war but continuing to bombard Ukrainian civilians. But the Kremlin hasn't changed its tactics. 'I'm disappointed in President Putin,' Trump said during a visit to Scotland. The Kremlin pushed back, however, with a top Putin lieutenant warned Trump against 'playing the ultimatum game with Russia.' 'Russia isn't Israel or even Iran,' former president Dmitry Medvedev, who is deputy head of the country's Security Council, wrote on social platform X. 'Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war. Not between Russia and Ukraine, but with his own country,' Medvedev said. Since Russia's full-scale invasion of its neighbor, the Kremlin has warned Kyiv's Western backers that their involvement could end up broadening the war to NATO countries. Advertisement 'Kremlin officials continue to frame Russia as in direct geopolitical confrontation with the West in order to generate domestic support for the war in Ukraine and future Russian aggression against NATO,' the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington think tank, said late Monday. The Ukrainian air force said Russia launched two Iskander-M ballistic missiles along with 37 Shahed-type strike drones and decoys at Ukraine overnight. They say 32 Shahed drones were intercepted or neutralized by Ukrainian air defenses. The Russian attack close to midnight Monday hit the Bilenkivska Correctional Facility with four guided aerial bombs, according to the State Criminal Executive Service of Ukraine. At least 42 inmates were hospitalized with serious injuries, while another 40 people, including one staff member, sustained various injuries. The strike destroyed the prison's dining hall, damaged administrative and quarantine buildings, but the perimeter fence held and no escapes were reported, authorities said. Ukrainian officials condemned the attack, saying that targeting civilian infrastructure, such as prisons, is a war crime under international conventions. In Dnipro, missiles hit the city of Kamianske, partially destroying a three-story building and damaging nearby medical facilities including a maternity hospital and a city hospital ward. Two people were killed and five were wounded, including a pregnant woman who is now in a serious condition, according to regional head Serhii Lysak. Further Russian attacks hit communities in Synelnykivskyi district with FPV drones and aerial bombs, killing at least one person and injuring two others. According to Lysak, Russian forces also targeted the community of Velykomykhailivska, killing a 75-year-old woman and injuring a 68-year-old man.
