NC Insurance Commissioner Appeals to President Against Greg Lindberg’s Pardon

North Carolina’s insurance commissioner, Mike Causey, has yet to receive a response from the White House, three weeks after he sent a letter urging President Biden to refrain from pardoning Greg Lindberg, a twice-convicted insurance entrepreneur.

In his letter, Causey emphasized the severity of Lindberg’s actions, stating, “Mr. Lindberg’s criminal conduct was not incidental, technical, or victimless. It was deliberate, sustained, and directly aimed at corrupting a state regulatory system charged with protecting the public in order to enrich himself.” Causey played a crucial role in the case, having worn a wire to record conversations that led to Lindberg’s bribery conviction in 2020 and again in a retrial in 2024.

Both of North Carolina’s U.S. Senators, Thom Tillis and Ted Budd, Republicans, have expressed their agreement with Causey’s stance against a pardon for Lindberg, according to a spokesman from the NC Department of Insurance.

Initially, a pardon for Lindberg—a reported billionaire embroiled in extensive litigation over his criminal charges—was not a significant concern for most North Carolina officials. However, the situation has changed. President Trump has granted pardons to numerous convicted felons, including a former Illinois governor and a Virginia sheriff convicted of accepting bribes. This trend raises the likelihood of Lindberg receiving a pardon.

In an effort to sway Trump, Lindberg, who has historically been a significant donor to Republican candidates, has launched a public relations and lobbying campaign. Reports indicate that he hired Trump’s former bodyguard to lobby for a pardon in October.

Trump has criticized his predecessor’s Department of Justice for what he describes as overzealous and partisan prosecutions, having overturned over 1,600 convictions since taking office. However, Causey, a Republican and former insurance agent, insists that Lindberg’s arrest and trials were based on substantial evidence of illegal actions and financial misconduct.

“The evidence presented was not speculative. It was contemporaneously recorded, exhaustively investigated, and ultimately proven in federal court,” Causey’s letter states. “Mr. Lindberg’s actions were a calculated attempt to undermine regulatory oversight, evade accountability, and silence those whose duty it was to safeguard policyholders, retirees, and working families.”

Causey further noted that the repercussions of Lindberg’s misconduct continue to affect policyholders of his troubled life insurance companies.

“The consequences of Mr. Lindberg’s misconduct did not end with his conviction,” the letter explains. “The victims of his illegal activities, including policyholders and employees whose financial security was placed at risk, continue to suffer the repercussions today. These harms are real, ongoing, and irreparable. A pardon would not undo them; it would compound them by signaling that wealth, influence, and persistence can outweigh accountability.”

Lindberg was convicted of attempting to bribe Causey to remove a Department of Insurance official who had exposed his financial irregularities, including diverting insurance carrier reserves for his other businesses. Although an appeals court initially overturned the conviction due to improper jury instructions, Lindberg was convicted again in 2024. He is currently awaiting re-sentencing while courts assess the restitution he may owe in related cases.

In late 2024, Lindberg pleaded guilty to $2 billion in fraud in a related prosecution.

“Clemency is most compelling when it corrects a clear miscarriage of justice or shows mercy where the law has operated too harshly,” Causey’s letter asserts. “Neither condition applies here. Mr. Lindberg received due process, extensive judicial review, and every protection afforded under the Constitution. His convictions reflect accountability, not excess.”

The full letter can be viewed here.

Related: NC High Court Lets Stand Lindberg’s Civil Fraud Liability

NC High Court Allows Liquidation of Lindberg Insurers; He Owes $524M in Fed Case

Topics
North Carolina

North Carolina’s insurance commissioner, Mike Causey, has yet to receive a response from the White House, three weeks after he sent a letter urging President Biden to refrain from pardoning Greg Lindberg, a twice-convicted insurance entrepreneur.

In his letter, Causey emphasized the severity of Lindberg’s actions, stating, “Mr. Lindberg’s criminal conduct was not incidental, technical, or victimless. It was deliberate, sustained, and directly aimed at corrupting a state regulatory system charged with protecting the public in order to enrich himself.” Causey played a crucial role in the case, having worn a wire to record conversations that led to Lindberg’s bribery conviction in 2020 and again in a retrial in 2024.

Both of North Carolina’s U.S. Senators, Thom Tillis and Ted Budd, Republicans, have expressed their agreement with Causey’s stance against a pardon for Lindberg, according to a spokesman from the NC Department of Insurance.

Initially, a pardon for Lindberg—a reported billionaire embroiled in extensive litigation over his criminal charges—was not a significant concern for most North Carolina officials. However, the situation has changed. President Trump has granted pardons to numerous convicted felons, including a former Illinois governor and a Virginia sheriff convicted of accepting bribes. This trend raises the likelihood of Lindberg receiving a pardon.

In an effort to sway Trump, Lindberg, who has historically been a significant donor to Republican candidates, has launched a public relations and lobbying campaign. Reports indicate that he hired Trump’s former bodyguard to lobby for a pardon in October.

Trump has criticized his predecessor’s Department of Justice for what he describes as overzealous and partisan prosecutions, having overturned over 1,600 convictions since taking office. However, Causey, a Republican and former insurance agent, insists that Lindberg’s arrest and trials were based on substantial evidence of illegal actions and financial misconduct.

“The evidence presented was not speculative. It was contemporaneously recorded, exhaustively investigated, and ultimately proven in federal court,” Causey’s letter states. “Mr. Lindberg’s actions were a calculated attempt to undermine regulatory oversight, evade accountability, and silence those whose duty it was to safeguard policyholders, retirees, and working families.”

Causey further noted that the repercussions of Lindberg’s misconduct continue to affect policyholders of his troubled life insurance companies.

“The consequences of Mr. Lindberg’s misconduct did not end with his conviction,” the letter explains. “The victims of his illegal activities, including policyholders and employees whose financial security was placed at risk, continue to suffer the repercussions today. These harms are real, ongoing, and irreparable. A pardon would not undo them; it would compound them by signaling that wealth, influence, and persistence can outweigh accountability.”

Lindberg was convicted of attempting to bribe Causey to remove a Department of Insurance official who had exposed his financial irregularities, including diverting insurance carrier reserves for his other businesses. Although an appeals court initially overturned the conviction due to improper jury instructions, Lindberg was convicted again in 2024. He is currently awaiting re-sentencing while courts assess the restitution he may owe in related cases.

In late 2024, Lindberg pleaded guilty to $2 billion in fraud in a related prosecution.

“Clemency is most compelling when it corrects a clear miscarriage of justice or shows mercy where the law has operated too harshly,” Causey’s letter asserts. “Neither condition applies here. Mr. Lindberg received due process, extensive judicial review, and every protection afforded under the Constitution. His convictions reflect accountability, not excess.”

The full letter can be viewed here.

Related: NC High Court Lets Stand Lindberg’s Civil Fraud Liability

NC High Court Allows Liquidation of Lindberg Insurers; He Owes $524M in Fed Case

Topics
North Carolina