US court will not review decision on late Enron founder
Shareholder's attempt to reinstate Kenneth Lay's conviction is turned down by senior court
A US Supreme Court has announced that it will not review a decision made by a
lower court to vacate the conviction of the late founder and former chairman
of Enron,
Kenneth Lay.
Last year the US district judge Sim Lake dismissed a federal indictment to
bring Lay to trial – despite the former chairman having died of a heart attack
earlier that year.
Lay was unable to exhaust the appeals process when he died in July, less than
two months after a jury convicted him on six charges of conspiracy and fraud and
four charges of bank fraud.
But former Enron shareholder Russel Butler requested that Lay’s conviction be
reinstated as part of a request for restitution of Butler’s $8,000 investment.
Lay’s estate said the Crime Victims’ Rights Act did not address circumstances in
which the defendant is dead.
Civil lawsuits against Lay’s estate are still continuing, although there has
been some controversy over just how much that estate is worth.
A month before the conspiracy and fraud conviction was vacated, Lay’s estate
agreed to pay $12m to settle claims brought by employees who participated in
Enron’s pension plan.
Further reading:
Enron sentencing delayed till October
Former Enron bosses labeled ‘liars’