Letter of Apology » Enron

Vanderbilt’s Skilling Roundtable

Solomon Wisenberg — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 16:42:28 +0000

Vanderbilt Law Review hosts an excellent En Banc Roundtable here on the Enron-related case of Skilling v. United States, currently before the Supreme Court. Articles on the historical evolution of honest services fraud by Ellen Podgor and the unconstitutional vagueness of the honest services statute by Julie O’Sullivan are particularly outstanding.

Skilling Asks For En Banc Review

Solomon Wisenberg — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:25:55 +0000

The Houston Chronicle reports here that former Enron CEO Jeff Skilling has asked the full Fifth Circuit to review the panel decision, authored by Ed Prado, affirming his convictions. The main thrust of the motion apparently pertains to the honest services fraud question, with Skilling claiming that the panel strayed from recent Fifth circuit precedent.

Fifth Circuit Affirms Jeff Skilling Conviction

Solomon Wisenberg — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 05:27:02 +0000

Judge Ed Prado’s 104 page opinion affirms the guilty verdicts in toto. The case is remanded for re-sentencing, however, in light of an improper enhancement for substantially jeopardizing a financial institution. Jerry Smith and District Judge Alia Ludlum (sitting by designation) rounded out the panel.

NatWest Three’s Bermingham Returns To UK

Dave Westheimer — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 05:52:58 +0000

Bloomberg reports that former NatWest investment banker David Bermingham was flown to the UK on November 21 to finish serving his 37 month prison sentence for wire fraud in connection with a scheme devised by former Enron CFO Andrew Fastow. Bermingham entered prison in May. All three bankers were cleared to return on November 6 (earlier). In the UK, unlike in the US federal system, Bermingham will automatically be eligible for parole after serving half his sentence.

Supreme Court Will Hear Appeal Of Enron Broadband’s Yeager

Dave Westheimer — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 05:14:47 +0000

The US Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear the appeal of former Enron Broadband Division strategic planning executive Scott Yeager, who is fighting a retrial on insider trading charges. Yeager’s retrial on 13 onsider trading and money laundering counts had been scheduled for next March before US District Judge Vanessa Gilmore in Houston, but the Supreme Court is not expected to hear arguments before February or March. Yeager was acquitted in 2005 on conspiracy and fraud counts but jurors were hung on insider trading and money laundering counts. The essence of his appeal is that he couldn’t have engaged in insider trading and money laundering since he’s not guilty of participating in the alleged conspiracy and fraud. In March, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit ruled that Gilmore was correct in refusing to dismiss the counts.

The Court’s list of accepted cases didn’t include the appeal of Yeager’s co-defendant Rex Shelby, former broadband divison software executive. Shelby’s attorney held out hope that he won’t be on Monday’s rejected list. His retrial is scheduled for January. A third co-defendant, Joseph Hirko, pleaded guilty last month to one count of wire fraud and sgreed to serve a sentence of 12 to 16 months in prison (Houston Chronicle).

NatWest Three Cleared For Return To UK

Dave Westheimer — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 07:34:28 +0000

David Bermingham, Giles Darby and Gary Mulgrew, three British investment bankers known as the NatWest Three, will now be able to leave for the UK to serve the remainder of their 37 month prison sentences. On Thursday, the three men appeared before US Magistrate Judge Frank Maas in New York, who approved the transfers. The former Greenwich NatWest bankers were indicted on seven counts of wire fraud in 2002 in connection with a scheme devised by former Enron CFO Andrew Fastow and his right-hand man Michael Kopper. They pleaded guilty in 2007 to one count of wire fraud and were sentenced to 37 months in prison plus a total of $7.3 million in restitution by US District Judge Ewing Werlein in Houston on February 22, 2008 (earlier). Their plea agreements allowed a transfer to the UK after several months, where they will be eligible for parole after serving half their sentences. Each has already served about six months (Bloomberg).

Skilling Moved To Colorado Prison

Dave Westheimer — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 05:51:26 +0000

Former Enron CEO Jeff Skilling has been moved from the low-security federal prison at Waseca, Minnesota to a facility in the suburban Denver area. The federal prison in Englewood, Colorado has recently been changed from medium security to low security, while the Minnesota facility is being turned into a low security prison for women. Skilling is serving a 24 year prison sentence for conspiracy, securities fraud and insider trading; his appeal is still pending before the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The Rocky Mountain News also notes that former Enron Broadband CEO Ken Rice, who has been serving his 27 month sentence for securities fraud at a federal prison camp in Beaumont, Texas, was moved to a halfway house in Houston in August in anticipation of his release in February 2009.

Hirko Pleads Guilty

Dave Westheimer — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:15:10 +0000

As expected (earlier), former Enron Broadband Services division CEO Joseph Hirko pleaded guilty on Tuesday to one count of wire fraud, admitting that he misled investors at Enron’s January 2000 analyst conference by announcing that a new operating system on Enron’s broadband network was completed when it was actually still under development. Hirko agreed to serve a prison sentence of 12 to 16 months; he will also forfeit $7 million in cash and $1.7 million in deferred compensation to the government, which represents what he gained when stock prices rose following the announcement. US District Judge Vanessa Gilmore scheduled his sentencing for March 3, 2009 (Houston Chronicle).

Former Enron Broadband Exec Hirko To Plead Guilty

Dave Westheimer — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 07:20:11 +0000

The Houston Chronicle’s Kristen Hays reports that former Enron Broadband Services division CEO Joseph Hirko is expected to plead guilty on Tuesday to a single count of wire fraud before US District Judge Vanessa Gilmore in Houston. The plea agreement calls for Hirko to serve 12 to 16 months in prison. Hirko and former broadband divison software executive Rex Shelby were scheduled to be retried starting December 1 (earlier). The two men and three others were accused of deceiving investors in connection with a failed broadband venture. Hirko, Shelby and former division strategic planning executive Scott Yeager were tried in 2005 and acquitted on some counts, but the jury deadlocked on other counts. Gilmore refused to dismiss those counts. Shelby is still scheduled for trial in December, while Yeager’s retrial is set to begin on January 12, 2009.

Enron Broadband Retrials Delayed

Dave Westheimer — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 05:15:34 +0000

US District Judge Vanessa Gilmore on Friday delayed the retrials of former Enron Broadband executives Joseph Hirko, Rex Shelby and Scott Yeager while they take their case to the US Supreme Court. In March, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit ruled that Gilmore was correct in refusing to dismiss most of the remaining charges against Hirko and Shelby and all the remaining charges against Yeager (earlier) after jurors were hung on many counts; the three were acquitted on some counts. Gilmore had scheduled the retrial of Hirko and Shelby for November 3, while Yeager’s retrial was set for January 12, 2009. But prosecutors said that it would be mid-November at the earliest before the Supreme Court could decide if it would take the case. In response, Gilmore rescheduled the Hirko and Shelby retrial for December 1 and the Yeager trial for March 24, 2009 (Houston Chronicle).