California, cannabis, and corruption recently squared off in United States v. Kimbrew . The Ninth Circuit’s holding in United States v. Kimbrew , 2019 WL 6693744 (9th Cir. Dec. 9, 2019) clarified the reach of the federal bribery statute, 18 U.S.C. § 201, which requires the existence of a quid pro quo agreement. A quid pro quo is the exchange of something in return for something else. As a topical example , President Trump’s impeachment stems from an alleged quid pro quo: the White House purportedly attempted to leverage foreign aid in exchange for the investigation of President Trump’s potential political rival, Joe Biden. In the white collar crime context , a quid pro quo agreement occurs when “the defendant received, or intended to receive, something of value in exchange for an official act.” United States v. Silver , 864 F.3d 102, 111 (2d Cir. 2017). The Kimbrew court held that criminal liability attaches when a government official agrees to do something in an off...
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