Until someone decides to make behavior like this illegal, there's no reason why business leaders like this will act differently. What's the downside? It's hard to even imagine such an enormous failure could not have any legal consequences but when the bank lobbyists are writing the laws, this is what happens. Why should we expect any other results? Seattle Times:
Kerry Killinger took home $25.1 million in 2008 — the year he was fired as Washington Mutual's chief executive and the company itself effectively ceased to exist.
Killinger, who had been CEO since 1990, received a $15.3 million severance payment after he was let go in September 2008, as well as a $445,200 lump-sum payment for vacation benefits and a $300,669 "special payment," not further identified.
The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations unearthed Killinger's 2008 compensation during its 18-month-long investigation into the financial crisis.
