Bernard Madoff Allowed to Stay Out of Jail According to Judge

Bernard Madoff, the accused white-collar con artist who reportedly ran a $50 billion investment fraud, is allowed to remain on house arrest rather than being sent to jail according to a U.S. judge. Madoff, who also apparently was caught sending cash and diamonds to relatives and friends, was considered a flight risk by prosecutors, but the new ruling will allow him to remain in the relatively comfortable confines of his luxury apartment. Said Magistrate Judge Ronald Ellis of the U.S. District Court in Manhattan yesterday, "Aside from the bare assertion that there remains some risk of flight, the government has failed to articulate any flaw in the current conditions of release."

Prosecutors, who had asked the judge to revoke Madoff’s bail because he violated a December 18 court order that froze his assets, were disappointed with the decision. Most legal experts asked about the prosecution’s request said they would be hard-pressed to have won concessions. According to Daniel Margolis, a partner at the law firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, "The guy is on electronic monitoring, he has a guard watching him every day, and the press is watching his every move. So fleeing the country under those conditions would require an escape plan of cinematic proportions."

Despite the ruling, the judge did order some stricter conditions of Madoff’s bail, including regular searches of his mail and an order for Madoff to provide the government with a complete list of any so-called "portable" valuables, which is apparently to be checked every two weeks.