
Silicon Valley CEO Pleads ‘No Contest’ to Abusing His Wife - hcmag
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/04/17/silicon-valley-ceo-pleads-no-contest-to-abusing-his-wife-and-is-offered-a-deal-for-less-than-30-days-in-jail.html
======
samfisher83
>The prosecutor in the case, Assistant District Attorney Steve Fein, described
the plea deal to The Daily Beast as a fair outcome, noting that accessory
after the fact is also a felony, though not a violent one that would place
Gattani at risk of being deported back to his native India.

>Fein noted that the plea calls for a six-month jail term, though only 30 days
of actual incarceration, with the balance served in the weekend-work program,
doing manual labor for eight-hour shifts but otherwise at liberty. Fein
maintained that Rastogi offered no objection when he provided her with the
details of the deal.

Some other lovely things this guy said: >“Yeah I would like to see you
murdered,” he says. “I used to always think, like in some murders (in movies
and all) they show that the murderer stabbed the victim with a knife 45 times;
how would someone do that. Killing someone even once is so difficult to
accomplish. Then how can that person/man stab the knife in the victim’s body
so many times. I now imagine and can relate now to doing that to you. And I am
not kidding. If you can’t believe me I can swear on anyone’s life.”

This doesn't seem like justice given this is his second incident. I am all for
second chances, but beating your wife probably multiple times should be
grounds for having the book thrown at you including getting kicked out of the
country. How he is getting 30 days for all the things he put this women
though. They need to throw him jail for a while.

------
bakul
Many years ago my colleagues and I helped another colleague and her kids move
out of her home. She was deathly scared of her abuser husband and planned
everything in secret. But things quite stressful when the husband showed up in
the middle of the move (a neighbor called the husband thinking a burglary was
taking place). In the end nobody got hurt and we drove away the moving van but
we were all shaking. Her husband was a NASA scientist.

The point I want to make is abusers come from all walks of life and are of
every nationality. Please do not use this incident as an excuse to generalize
or discriminate against Indians or any other particular group. Abusers need to
be punished to the full extent of the law, regardless their origin. In this
particular case you can look up on crunchbase who funded this guy's company
and try to bear pressure.

~~~
nojvek
Seems crunchbase updated his profile.
[https://www.crunchbase.com/person/abhishek-
gattani#/entity](https://www.crunchbase.com/person/abhishek-gattani#/entity)

Seems like the investors aren't quite happy with him too.
[https://pando.com/2017/04/18/i-am-seething-anger-calling-
him...](https://pando.com/2017/04/18/i-am-seething-anger-calling-him-animal-
would-be-disgrace-animals-cuberon-investors-react-reports-domestic-violence-
ceo-abhishek-gattani/)

------
mc32
Strangely, it appears the main reason this was not elevated to felony assault
is because the DA in St Clara County avoided that because it could lead to
deportation which the DA prefers to avoid, "Fein indicated that his boss,
Santa Clara District Attorney Jeff Rosen, seeks to avoid such deportations".

That seems odd. Not saying Rosen's decision is as malformed as Aaron Pesky's,
but it deserves some questioning.

~~~
rm2040
Gotta keep the H1B train rolling at all costs! Don't dare discourage it with
any deportations...

~~~
acchow
I think deportation would result in this person getting off scot-free in their
home country, which the DA would rather avoid...

------
gumby
I uprooted this not because I think any of us should take purist interest in
the tragic events of someone else's life. The article is interesting on many
levels.

This how an abuser works, subtly and forcefully both. The dialogue is also
bizarre in that it focuses on technical details as a vehicle (and would be
almost incomprehensible 10 years ago.

It shows how the justice system works at the retail ("end user") level, when
most discussion of justice issues happens at a macro level.

And it shows how ubiquitous cameras/recording devices change not just police
and politicians, not just big airlines, but the justice in proples' lives.
Ubiquitous surveillance cuts both ways.

(Plus there's the weirdness of the court being in "fabled Palo Alto" \-- wtf?)

~~~
jpatokal
The stereotypical wife beater is an unemployed alcoholic white man who wears a
ketchup-stained wifebeater (hence the nickname) and lives a trailer park.
They're not loaded senior execs/CEOs running large companies in Palo Alto,
which is one of the richest cities in the entire US.

And of course, if someone conforming to the stereotype were to find themselves
in court facing identical charges, they would not be walking away with a slap
on the wrist...

------
tyingq
He's apparently the CEO of Cuberon. Wanted to know so I could make sure it's
not a company I'm doing business with.

~~~
praneshp
They used to post here long back.
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10661084](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10661084)

~~~
tyingq
s/They/He it appears.

~~~
praneshp
No, I meant the company when I said they.

------
vinhboy
I found this video very interesting. I always hear about the sexist tech
culture, but I've never been a witness to it. Seeing this video helps me get a
more complete picture. I can now see how an asshole like this would take his
attitude to work and treat female employees in a similar manner.

Obviously this is not unique to tech, but hearing a guy beat his wife over a
"bug", something I deal with and talk to people about at work daily, is really
disturbing in a unique way.

------
jmhardman2002
Why hasn't this gotten more press? I realize it's a new story but when you
Google his name the first thing that comes up is his disgusting LinkedIn page.
Hoping this seriously disrupts his life. Because that would serve him right.
What a sociopath.

~~~
jpatokal
It will. Felony convictions will torpedo virtually any career.

------
fatjokes
Okay, I admit I found it hard to read the beating transcript in detail so I
just skimmed. Could someone tell/confirm for me: is he actually beating her
because of a software/design problem?

~~~
gumby
No, he is using a software problem as an excuse and a tool.

------
nojvek
I have no idea what the Santa Clara judge was thinking, but I think he just
made a whole lot of women feel like taking such things to court will actually
make things work. I'm pretty sure Neha will get beaten up even more after
Guttani leaves in 13 days.

Why would he even care if he gets deported. Does America really want scum like
this? Silicon Valley investors will invest in his company anyway, just the way
United stock has sprung back.

This makes me incredibly sad how such actions go away unpunished without any
serious repercussions.

~~~
ohkaiby
You mean ‘she’:

[https://ballotpedia.org/Allison_M._Danner](https://ballotpedia.org/Allison_M._Danner)

[https://law.stanford.edu/directory/allison-
danner/](https://law.stanford.edu/directory/allison-danner/)

------
doug1001
even the trivial jail time of 30 days is not what he'll actually serve--that's
apparently only 13 days.

towards the end of the article:

"The parties had apparently decided to knock the two days off what was
effectively a 15-day jail sentence, making it 13 for Gattani. And Gattani
would be allowed to serve the weekends first, in accordance with his
preference."

(the "two days" refers to portions of two consecutive days Gattani spent in
jail immediately after his arrest.)

the sentence is of course based on the crime he was charged with--but he crime
he was charged with was not "felony assault", instead it was watered down to
avoid any chance that he'll be deported.

But to 36-year-old Rastogi’s dismay, the top charge against Abhishek was
reduced from felony assault to felony accessory after the fact, with an
accompanying misdemeanor of “offensive touching.”

so those nine or so loud whacks heard in the audio recording--the sound of
Gattani hitting his wife on the side of the head with a closed fist--were just
"offensive touching"

and the "accessory after the fact" is just bizarre. Gattani wasn't an
accessory to the assault, he was the assailant--the only one!

The particular type of accessory--"after the fact"\--refers to someone who did
not even participate in the primary offense, but was only involved after it
was committed (eg, usually invoked when someone conceals or destroys evidence
of the crime).

and even to that Alice-in-Wonderland charge, Gattani only had to plead "no
contest"; apparently he wasn't required to plead "guilty" to get the benefit
of the plea bargain.

------
paulddraper
Though I don't claim this particular case is usual, it is sadly true that wife
abuse is far more common in Indian culture than in the US.

In a conversation recently between my wife and an Indian neighbor, it was
mentioned in passing that a spouse would be jailed for physical abuse. The
married Indian women looked rather worried and asked if it happened just once
and that was it then surely no one would get in trouble?

~~~
panic
It's dangerous to justify a statement about a large group of people or their
culture using anecdotes. It's the kind of reasoning that leads to racism,
antisemitism, etc.

~~~
jpatokal
Here's a data point: 57% of a survey of young men in India said it's OK to
beat your wife.
[http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-04-25/india...](http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-04-25/india/31398208_1_domestic-
violence-spousal-violence-centre-for-social-research)

The equivalent figure in the US is 10%.
[http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/03/18/39286028...](http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/03/18/392860281/alarming-
number-of-women-think-spousal-abuse-is-sometimes-ok)

~~~
propman
Men in India are far different than Indian men in America though. Indian men
in America have the lowest crime rates by an order of magnitude in all facets,
are the wealthiest, possess the highest percentage of college degrees etc.
You're seeing the best and the brightest with a few scum that slip through the
cracks. There are tens of millions of people in India especially in villages
that force marry children and do a whole bunch of stupid shit. This is a
completely different subset. If this study was done for Indian men in America
I am confident that it would be as low or lower than any other ethnic group

~~~
paulddraper
You may be right; Indian Americans will probably be closer to American norms
than Indians.

~~~
nojvek
I believe when it comes to Skilled Immigration policy, America has some really
good filters.

------
jmhardman2002
Why has this story not gotten more press? You Google his name and first thing
that comes up is his disgusting LinkedIn page.

------
qazpot
>> Multiple times in the past, Mr Gattani would come back home from Cuberon,
his startup, after having an argument with his co-founder and tell me, “you
and my co-founder (who shall remain unnamed) are the same – lazy, empty
promise makers, Positive fools, with no results. I can’t trust him.” >>

------
lwhite48
This is shameful and sadly just another example of one of the reasons why so
many woman do not come forward.

Also extremely upsetting to see next to nothing about it on twitter. We badger
United (rightfully so), but us living and working here in the Bay Area barely
seem to even notice things like this. It's our voice that can have the most
impact here in at the very least making it difficult for him to keep his job.
Without severe consequences people, especially those in power, will continue
to abuse.

------
SK123
There seem to me several perpetrators in this case, with Gattani being the
primary one. DA Jeff Rosen and Assistant DA Steve Fein, along with Judge
Danner are all perpetrators, by ridiculing the victim, and aiding Gattani to
stay in the country and further torture and victimize the victim further. The
people of Santa Clara county will remember DA Jeff Rosen when it is election
time. SHAME on you Rosen.

------
oculusthrift
we need to deport people like this

~~~
imesh
Why? He will just go be a rich asshole in India, we should take his money and
than deport him.

~~~
samfisher83
He needs to be in Jail. I would highly recommend reading the entire article.
This guy seems like a psychopath. He put that woman through hell.

~~~
enraged_camel
Putting him in prison costs us - the taxpayers - money. Deporting him doesn't.

~~~
guiambros
He's a criminal, and criminals should go to jail. Only after release they
should be deported.

Cost is not the issue. The issue is letting criminals go unpunished, because
their only sentence is getting a free ride back to their country (which, btw,
is also paid by taxpayers dollars).

~~~
enraged_camel
>>He's a criminal, and criminals should go to jail. Only after release they
should be deported.

That's not how it works. We deport illegal aliens instead of putting them in
prison, despite the fact that they broke the law. The reason is obvious.

>>The issue is letting criminals go unpunished, because their only sentence is
getting a free ride back to their country (which, btw, is also paid by
taxpayers dollars).

The cost of the plane ticket simply _pales_ in comparison to housing and
feeding him over the course of many years.

Besides, the US has treaties with most countries whereby deported criminals
serve prison sentences in their home countries. I can assure you prisons in
India are not very comfortable...

~~~
dragonwriter
> We deport illegal aliens instead of putting them in prison, despite the fact
> that they broke the law.

Because usually the law they broke wasn't criminal, and quite often if it was
criminal (particularly if any other crime than illegal entry— which not all
"illegal aliens" are guilty of, because, e.g., visa overstays—is involved)
they serve a criminal sentence first, and then are deported (and sometimes,
not even _then_ are deported.)

------
drawnwren
What he did is really shitty, but is this article appropriate for HN? This
feels much more like smut than articles I am used to seeing here.

~~~
sounds
I'm disturbed seeing this article as well, but if the tech industry is going
to face the facts, this needs to be upvoted.

Gamergate?

Uber's woes?

It's indicative of a larger problem.

I would prefer less commentary and more call to action in the discussion, but
that's just me. This is happening right in Santa Clara! Call the "Santa Clara
Hall of Justice!" This is local government, tell them how you feel.

(Yes, the number is on the web.)

~~~
drawnwren
So a discussion of a larger problem in tech would seem very warranted on HN,
but this article is very specific in its scope and it comes out in the
discussion that formed around it. I.e. lots of, "this individual is
disgusting" vs "this ties into the larger problem in tech." Again, I
completely agree with the sentiments expressed - but HN is an explicitly
walled garden.

