“Regardless of the siren calls from various legal realms, the glaring reality remains: there isn’t any existing basis to pin [the honest services wire fraud statute] on foreign commercial bribery, as the apex court’s Percoco verdict clarified,” elaborated Judge Chen.
Interestingly, Lopez and Full Play had moved for their acquittals even before these groundbreaking Supreme Court decisions. Yet, their implications became the talk of subsequent legal discussions.
A Maze of Implications
The world of football administration is waiting with bated breath. Uncertainty looms about what this ruling means for the 2017 guilty sentences of two ex-CONMEBOL officials and the multitude of admissions in the long-winding FIFA bribery investigations since 2015.
Judge Chen, carefully playing her cards, remarked it’s “too early to gauge this memo and order’s implications” for other accused. But, as a safety net, she’s halted forthcoming verdicts in this case, pending any potential higher reviews.
Representatives for Lopez were on cloud nine. David Sarratt and John Gleeson exclaimed, “Our trust in our client’s innocence never wavered. Today’s decision brings immense joy, not only to us but to Hernan and his loved ones.”
