Charles Kushner

On June 30, 2004, Kushner was fined $508,900 by the Federal Election Commission for contributing to Democratic political campaigns in the names of his partnerships when he lacked authorization to do so.[11] In 2005, following an investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey,[12] U.S. Attorney Chris Christie negotiated a plea agreement with him, under which he pleaded guilty to 18 counts of illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion, and witness tampering.[13] The witness-tampering charge arose from Kushner's act of retaliation against William Schulder, his sister Esther's husband, who was cooperating with federal investigators; Kushner hired a prostitute he knew to seduce his brother-in-law, arranged to record an encounter between the two, and had the tape sent to his sister.[14][15][16][13] He was sentenced to two years in prison,[14] and served 14 months at Federal Prison Camp, Montgomery in Alabama[17][18] before being sent to a halfway house in Newark, New Jersey, to complete his sentence.[17][18][19] He was released from prison on August 25, 2006.[20]

As a result of his convictions, Kushner was disbarred and prohibited from practicing law in New Jersey,[21] New York,[22] and Pennsylvania.[23]

After being released from prison, Kushner shifted his business activities from New Jersey to New York City. In early 2007, Kushner Companies bought the 666 Fifth Avenue building in Manhattan for $1.8 billion.[24] He and his family are estimated to have a net worth of $1.8 billion.[1] He has employed two fellow inmates he became acquainted with in prison.[25]

Before 2016, Kushner was a donor to the Democratic Party.[12] He serves on the boards of Touro College, Stern College for Women, Rabbinical College of America, and the United Jewish Communities.[26] Kushner has donated to Harvard University, Stern College, the St. Barnabas Medical Center, and United Cerebral Palsy.[26] He contributed to the funding of two schools, Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy and Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School, in Livingston, New Jersey, and named them after his parents.[2][26][27] Kushner Hall is a building that is named after him on the Hofstra University campus.[28] The campus of Jerusalem's Shaare Zedek Medical Center is named the "Seryl and Charles Kushner Campus" in honor of their donation of $20 million.[29]

In August 2015, Kushner donated $100,000 to Donald Trump's Make America Great Again PAC, a super PAC supporting Trump's 2016 campaign for the presidency.[30] Kushner and his wife also hosted a reception for Trump at their Jersey Shore seaside mansion in Long Branch.[31]