Corp-Ethics.com - Report: Judge deals blow to Enron accused

Company	Enron [Company Info]
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Date	Issue	Title
11th May 2006	Fraud Investigation	Judge deals blow to Enron accused

Report

The judge in the Enron trial has ruled that jurors can find the energy firm's former bosses guilty of deliberately avoiding knowledge of massive fraud.

The ruling has raised concerns among the defence team and legal experts.

Known as the "ostrich instruction", because it refers to a person sticking their head in the sand, the ruling means that prosecutors will need a lower burden of proof to be successful.

However, Mr Skilling's lawyers said that they were concerned by the judge's decision.

"We have never asserted the ostrich defence," said Mr Skilling's lawyer, Daniel Petrocelli.

"We have said all along this was not a case of hear no evil, see no evil. It was a case of there was no evil."

Legal experts said that another worry was that the prosecution has not followed a line of argument that would allow for this verdict.

Speaking to the New York Times, law professor Ellen Podgor said that instead of showing that Mr Lay and Mr Skilling shielded themselves from the truth, the prosecution has claimed they deliberately chose to mislead investors and staff.

"They have presented a case where this guy was on a soap box telling public lies," she explained.

Lawyers for Mr Lay and Mr Skilling rested their defence on Monday and jury deliberations are due to start next week. The trial has been running for 15 weeks.

During questioning that has often been emotional and combative, Mr Lay has portrayed himself as a trusting man who was let down by corrupt staff, especially former finance chief and prosecution witness Andrew Fastow.

Other Reports on Enron
Date	Issue	Company	Report
26th Sep 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Fastow gets six-year term
13th Aug 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Prosecutors raise Enron boss fine
25th May 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Lay and Skilling guilty
15th May 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron bosses 'stole to pump egos'
26th Apr 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron feared witch hunt, Lay says
24th Apr 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Lay 'devastated' by Enron failure
18th Apr 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Skilling defends Enron share sale
13th Apr 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Skilling slams Enron prosecutors
12th Apr 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron 'held no cookie jar fund'
11th Apr 2006	Questionable Practice	Enron	Skilling denies cover-up at Enron
10th Apr 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	I'm innocent says ex-Enron chief
3rd Apr 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Key Enron witness 'lied in court'
22nd Mar 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron treasurer tells of 'lies'
16th Mar 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron whistleblower condemns Lay
14th Mar 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Key Enron witness 'duped bosses'
9th Mar 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Lay 'lied about Enron finances'
7th Mar 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron bosses hid massive losses
1st Mar 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron 'pretty fast and loose with its rules'
27th Feb 2006	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron money man 'raided reserves'
13th May 2005	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Former Enron executive sentenced
9th Jan 2005	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Enron bosses agree $168m payout
3rd Nov 2004	Fraud Investigation	Enron	Convictions in Enron fraud trial
28th Jun 2004	Other Issue	Enron	Enron ex-boss breaks his silence

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