a fascinating column about the biggest charter scam in history The 235-page indictment spells outthe gory details of a scheme in which an Australian man and his business partner opened 19 charter schools throughout Ca. and then took the public funding the schools received to operate & used it instead for real estate and other ventures. This is long, but worth the time to read to get an understanding of how easy it is, because of lax charter sector laws in some states, to defraud the public. California, which has more charter schools and more charter school students than any other state, now has one of the most lax charter laws in the country, allowing these schools to operate with little if any accountability or transparency to the public.