The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously upheld the federal conviction of a government contractor for defrauding a Pennsylvania state transportation program even though there was no financial loss.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote the court’s 9–0 opinion in Kousisis v. United States, which was released on May 22.
The justices held that the defendants committed fraud by accepting the project funds and not honoring a requirement that a so-called disadvantaged business be involved in the project. A disadvantaged business is typically one owned or controlled by individuals deemed to be socially or economically disadvantaged, such as women or racial minorities.
Stamatios Kousisis and Alpha Painting and Construction Co., an industrial-painting company he assisted in managing, won two government contracts for large painting projects in Philadelphia, the Supreme Court opinion said….