Michael M. Simpson, left, first Assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, thanks a colleague outside the Hale Boggs Federal Building in New Orleans on Friday, March 20, 2026, after a jury found personal injury attorneys Jason Giles and Vanessa Motta guilty on all counts in a sweeping staged-wrecks fraud case. Prosecutors said the lawyers worked with so-called Òslammers,Ó who packed cars with passengers, deliberately crashed them into 18-wheelers and then funneled those involved into fraudulent injury lawsuits. Jurors deliberated about 5 1/2 hours before convicting Giles and Motta, who were ordered jailed pending sentencing. (Staff photo by David Grunfeld, The Times-Picayune)