Encino Lawyer Among 2 Sentenced in ‘Alliance’ Corruption Case : Fraud: He was given two weekends in jail by a San Diego judge; the other got 16 months in prsion. They are among 12 who were convicted or pleaded guilty.

Saying “the Alliance” legal corruption case revealed “a very tawdry, slimy scheme,” a federal judge Monday imposed the first sentences on lawyers in the case, giving one 16 months in prison and another two weekends in jail and 200 hours of community service.

Barry J. Krasner, 42, of Manhattan Beach, who had pleaded guilty to a single felony count of lying on an income tax return, was ordered by U. S. District Judge Judith N. Keep to surrender Sept. 30 to begin serving 16 months in a federal minimum-security prison.

“I have nothing left. I hope I can put this behind me and rebuild my life,” Krasner told Keep before she pronounced sentence. Krasner must also perform 200 hours of community service after his release.

Keep also sentenced Mark M. Geyer, 41, of Encino to serve two weekends in jail and perform community service. Geyer, who had pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor tax violations, was also placed on three years probation.

The Alliance was the name used by prosecutors for a group of lawyers accused of manipulating civil litigation to bilk insurance companies out of at least $50 million in fees. Between 1984 and 1988, the lawyers appeared together in a series of lawsuits in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties in which insurance companies paid legal fees for policyholders who had been sued.

Unlike staged traffic accidents or other such scams, the disputes in these cases were real. But after gaining a foothold, prosecutors said, the lawyers resisted settlements and worked together to manufacture new legal controversies so that the cases would grow in size and cost.

Krasner and Geyer were among 12 attorneys who were convicted or pleaded guilty to charges in the Alliance case. Most were from the San Fernando Valley, and all but one was from Greater Los Angeles. Six law firm employees or clients also pleaded guilty in the case.

The 16-month sentence for Krasner, who the judge acknowledged played a minor role, bodes ill for the 10 lawyers to be sentenced during the next two months.

Whereas Krasner’s sentence stemmed from a single tax count, four of the attorneys facing sentencing next month were convicted of racketeering and multiple mail-fraud charges. Those four--including government informant Leonard Radomile, who was prosecuted despite tipping federal prosecutors to the Alliance scheme--were found guilty in June after a 10-week trial in which four other lawyers were acquitted.

Krasner and Geyer admitted to tax violations in return for dismissal of fraud and racketeering counts.

The tax charges stemmed from Krasner and Geyer’s role in two San Diego investment-fraud litigations known as the Amgo and Syndico cases. In 1986, Krasner and his law partner, Alan Hersh, who is awaiting sentencing, were recruited by Alliance lawyers to represent Amgo and Syndico investors who had sued clients of the Alliance lawyers.

According to testimony, the Alliance lawyers wanted “friendly” plaintiff lawyers who would refuse to settle and would take steps to expand defense work for the Alliance lawyers. Alliance attorneys funneled $50,000 to the Krasner & Hersh firm to finance its participation.

Apparently dissatisfied with the firm’s work, however, Alliance lawyers early in 1987 transferred the cases to Geyer. He represented Syndico and Amgo plaintiffs for only about three months. Later, the cases were transferred to Sherman Oaks lawyer Monty Mason II, who was convicted of mail fraud and racketeering.

Prosecutors acknowledged Geyer’s minor role by allowing him to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax counts and by not insisting that he resign from the State Bar as some others pleading guilty were required to do.

The tax counts involved Geyer’s failure to withhold proper amounts of income taxes from two workers he briefly employed in 1987 to work on the Amgo and Syndico cases. He faced up to a year in prison on each count.

Geyer’s lawyer, James C. Chalfant, told Keep that Geyer had “acted as a responsible attorney and got out” of the scheme “when he saw a sleazy sort of aspect to these cases. . . . I think he should receive credit for that.”

“Mr. Geyer, you were the least involved and you did get out and you should deserve credit for that,” said Keep, who rejected the government’s request for a $50,000 fine.

Krasner faced a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Assistant U. S. Atty. William Q. Hayes sought a sentence of 30 months imprisonment and a $20,000 fine.

The Alliance case is being watched “to see how lawyers deal with other lawyers in the system,” Hayes told Keep. “I think to impose a sentence less than 30 months is to send the wrong message.”