We all anticipated many problems and even personal devastation due to the downward spiral of the economy. Throw some greed into the mix, and you come up with the likes of Bernard Madoff and now Marcus Schrenker, who attempted to fake his suicide and then tried unsuccessfully to follow through with what might’ve been a sincere attempt after the fake attempt failed. Sound confusing? Yeah, well…

The happenings over the past couple of days are a culmination of numerous lawsuits filed by investors who trusted this man with their life savings, accusations of his working as an adviser

Marcus Schrenker

without the proper licensing and an imminent divorce, partially due to extramarital affairs. He’s been called a pathological liar, a thief and a narcissist. He’s been accused of stealing retirement funds and kept monies due to insurance companies.

Once the gap began closing in behind him and he was served both divorce papers and a judgment that ordered him to repay over $500,000 to one company he defrauded - all within a week’s time, he made the decision to plan an elaborate escape that would appear to be a suicide. It might have been a bold move, except for the fact the execution of this scheme wasn’t perfect. He sent a “woe is me” email to a friend prior to his leaving Indiana and said that he’d embarrassed his family for the last time. The friend was concerned and turned the email over to Indiana police. His second mistake was sending out a distress signal just south of Birmingham, AL. When planes approached his, while still flying, in attempts to rescue him, they discovered a pilot-less plane that had been set to auto-pilot. The open door on the plane was probably a giveaway, I would think. The plane crashed close to the Alabama-Florida state line and it was nothing short of a miracle that the plane, when it crashed, didn’t kill someone on the ground. That was a huge risk he took with absolutely no consideration to the damage a wayward plane could potentially have to people who’d never even heard of him. Then again, his selfishness allowed him to bring pain to people he knows and loves; one can’t expect any considerations for perfect strangers. This was clearly not a last minute whim since he’d already hid a motorcycle in Alabama for the last leg of his escape. He was caught Tuesday night in Chattahoochee. He was found in his tent shortly after he tried to slit his wrists and was taken to a hospital, where he remains.

He now stands to be charged with countless other crimes in more than one state, since he was captured in Alabama and because his plane crashed in Florida, authorities will now have to decide whether to charge him with some kind of negligence or worse. Just a guess, but my money’s on his being a lonely soul right about now. He’s burned his marriage, destroyed his career and betrayed even his closest friends…all in his quest for money.

As we’ve all heard by now, the big automakers have submitted their plans that would justify the billion dollars in loans, courtesy of American taxpayers. And too, we’ve all heard the latest out of the sports world and how the NFL has suspended six players for failed drug tests, including the “heart of the Minnesota Vikings”, Kevin Williams and Pat Williams (no relation). The official charges say they violated the league’s steroid policies.

As if these stories and what feels like a million others in yesterdays news weren’t disheartening enough, Birmingham, AL mayor Larry Langford was arrested by the FBI for charges that make one’s head spin. Although information regarding the FBI arrest hasn’t been completely revealed, an SEC

Larry Langford

lawsuit (filed earlier this year) says a Montgomery banker, Bill Blount and Al LaPierre, who is one of Langford’s many cronies, didn’t disclose over $150,000 in payments to Mayor Langford. These payments were the price for some sort of business scheme (probably illegal) within the city of Birmingham. Not only that, but the lawsuit goes on to say the mayor hid the fact that after he received these monies, a 6.7 million dollar contract was conveniently handed to the banker and the cronie. The former commissioner for Jefferson County, John Katopodis, has already been indicted over a bogus charity that Langford founded when he was mayor of a smaller city outside Birmingham. The buzzards are circling, no doubt.

After he was arrested yesterday, his chief of staff in City Hall released a statement that said the arrest was anticipated but suggested the entire “error” was due to bad blood between Langford and a U.S. Attorney, Alice Martin, saying she knows her “days are numbered” as she prepares to exit her current post. Ah, but her hands aren’t necessarily clean either. Her office was ordered to pay $360,000 in June for “misguided prosecution” of an Alabama contractor. Read this story here. It doesn’t stop there. Her less than stellar image has been hit by several controversies, including criticism for her uninvited input during a lawsuit regarding Alabama’s former governor, Don Siegelman. And too, the story with the misguided prosecution of the Alabama contractor has triggered an investigation by the Justice Department into possible misconduct during this trial. There is a fascinating piece that was featured in Harper’s Magazine. Fair warning - it doesn’t put the state of Alabama in a flattering light. In fact, the author, Scott Horton, calls Alabama “home to the nation’s highest profile and most abusive political prosecution”. My guess is Mississippi’s favorite lawyer, John Grisham, will be penning a best-seller regarding these scandals (if he’s not already doing so).

It’s rare that those of us living in the south experience brutally cold temperatures, but it’s heating up fast here, even if it is December. In the meantime, everyone’s waiting to hear the details from Langdon’s arrest yesterday. If you’re interested, he made bail in time yesterday to ensure he’d be present during a City Hall meeting. Those in the know insist this is the tip of the iceberg and promises many heads will roll by the time this scandal wraps up.