As widely reported, the United States Department of Justice / Antitrust Division launched a major bid rigging investigation of the municipal bond industry and has already indicted a number of players -- some of whom have entered guilty pleas.  As this criminal case expands, it's likely that its ripples will widen into many aspects of local, county, and state financing.  Many industry participants and politicians are likely quaking in their boots. 

Read a comprehensive analysis by Bill Singer, Registered Rep's "Street Legal" columnist, of one recent guilty plea by  former J.P. Morgan banker James Hertz.

http://blogs.forbes.com/billsinger/2010/12/01/hertz-bid-rigging-plea/