Newsom Condemns DOJ Probe as Baseless, Links Trump Pardons to Systemic Fraud
Newsom – courtesy governor’s office
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday criticized the U.S. Department of Justice for opening what he called a “baseless investigation” into him while announcing new additions to a state-run website cataloging individuals with criminal convictions, fraud histories or ties to the Jan. 6 Capitol attack who have received pardons or other favorable treatment from President Donald Trump.
Newsom argued that the investigation aligns with what he described as the Trump administration’s efforts to silence and punish political opponents, according to the announcement. In response, California is formally demanding records from the DOJ identifying the basis for targeting the governor.
“The website underscores a contrast in the administration’s approach,” the press release stated. “[F]ederal resources are being directed toward investigations of political opponents while the President continues to extend clemency and other benefits to individuals convicted of serious crimes.”
The news release highlights eight additions to the Trump clemency database tied to “at least $1.6 billion in alleged Medicare and Medicaid fraud claims.”
First on the list was Philip Esformes, a former nursing home executive who was convicted in 2019 in a $1.3 billion Medicare and Medicaid fraud scheme.
According to the written statement, Trump saved Esformes from 20 years in prison just 14 months after the conviction. Esformes later pleaded guilty to an additional fraud charge after being pardoned.
Trump also pardoned Judith Negron, the owner of a Florida-based health care company that stole $205 million from programs that “supported vulnerable Americans.”
“Negron, along with two other owners and executives with the company she owned, American Therapeutic Corporation, were arrested in October 2010 for a scheme that prosecutors said billed Medicare for mental health treatments that patients didn’t need,” the release noted.
Former Florida ophthalmologist Salomon Melgen received a pardon from Trump in January 2021 after being convicted on 67 counts of Medicare billing fraud.
According to the announcement, Melgen falsely diagnosed patients and billed Medicare for “medically unnecessary procedures.” The fraud loss amounted to $42 million.
“His friendship and political connections with convicted former Senator Bob Menendez show that even your closest ties are part of the corruption happening in the country,” the announcement stated. “The only true diagnosis he should be giving to himself is lying.”
In 2025, Trump also pardoned former Skyline Healthcare executive Joseph Schwartz, who operated an estimated 95 nursing homes and was caught “preying on the wealth of patients to make his pockets bigger,” the statement reported.
Former American Therapeutic Corp. co-owner Lawrence S. Duran received clemency from the Trump administration in May 2025 after pleading guilty to Medicare fraud, health care fraud and money laundering in April 2011.
“The scheme generated about $205 million in false claims and roughly $87 million in Medicare payouts,” the press release emphasized. “His sentence included $87,533,863.46 in restitution.”
David Gentile, founder of GPB Capital, spent only a few days in prison before Trump granted him a commutation for a “massive investment fraud scheme with reports of the company’s holdings and investor claims to healthcare-related businesses.”
The announcement noted that Gentile was ordered to pay $15.5 million in restitution but will “not pay anything” because Trump “decided to let the fraudster off easy.”
Former health care CEO Terren Peizer was sentenced to 42 months in federal prison after a jury convicted him of insider trading. According to the news release, Trump pardoned Peizer in 2026.
Robert Harshbarger, Jr., was the final addition to the website. He was convicted of medication health care fraud in 2013 after distributing “misbranded kidney medications purchased from Chinese companies that were not approved for dialysis treatment by the FDA,” the statement said.
The press release concludes with a condemnation of what Newsom’s administration characterized as the Trump administration enabling Medicare fraud, Medicaid fraud and health care fraud by pardoning criminal political allies.
“We won’t be intimidated, and we won’t stay silent while the justice system is weaponized against political rivals and corrupted to protect political friends,” Newsom said, according to the statement.
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Breaking News Law Enforcement State of California
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Department of Justice Donald Trump Gavin Newsom Medicaid fraud Medicare fraud Presidential Pardons