In a politically fraught Medicare fraud case, a deal appears to be in the works between the Justice Department and a South Florida healthcare executive whose 20-year prison sentence was commuted by former President Donald Trump, according to law enforcement sources familiar with the negotiations.
A retrial of Esformes, who claims that Trump's commutation protects him against double jeopardy for being charged for the same crime, would likely be an abridged version of his first trial.
A plea deal, a more likely scenario that would require approval at the highest level of the Justice Department, is expected to include dropping the six hung counts against Esformes, giving him credit for his four-plus years previously served behind bars, and requiring payment of financial penalties totaling $44 million.
Both sides are not talking, but the court docket in Miami federal court shows they have repeatedly delayed a critical hearing with U.S. District Judge Robert Scola to set a new trial date because they're apparently negotiating a deal - possibly to avoid the retrial, sources told the Miami Herald.
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