All In

Supreme Court advocate and SCOTUSblog co-founder Tom Goldstein took the witness stand in his own defense yesterday at his federal criminal trial in Greenbelt, Maryland, marking one of the most dramatic moments yet in a case that has captivated both the legal world and public audiences alike.

Facing a 16-count indictment that includes tax evasion, failure to pay taxes, preparation of false tax returns, and making false statements on mortgage applications, Goldstein took the stand after the government rested its case.

Goldstein acknowledged his long involvement in professional poker — moments that propelled him into both major winnings and equally massive losses — but insisted that at no point did he willfully break the law.

Throughout the testimony, Goldstein described:

• his reliance on accountants and office managers to handle tax filings, which he admitted he disliked doing himself;

• his passion for poker as a “weirdly intellectual thing,” where strategy and risk-taking are part of the game;

• his decades of legal practice — including arguing more than 40 cases before the United States Supreme Court — before retiring in 2023.

Perhaps most striking was his admission that he omitted significant gambling debts on mortgage applications to keep them from his wife. This candid acknowledgment was offered in context, he said, not as evidence of criminal intent but as personal discretion about private affairs.

Holly Barker from Bloomberg covered it in depth here.  Cross today.