A criminal who is sentenced under tougher sentencing guidelines than were in effect when he began his fraudulent conduct cannot claim a violation of the ex post facto clause of the U.S. Constitution, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.
A divided circuit upheld the 2006 sentences of two Computer Associates defendants growing out of a fraudulent accounting practice ended in 2000 known as the “35-day month,” under which the company backdated contracts executed in the first few days of a financial quarter to recognize that revenue in the prior quarter.
