Lay's Enron conviction to be overturned
Former Enron boss died before his appeal could be heard
The conviction of
Ken
Lay on fraud and conspiracy charges relating to the collapse of
Enron should be wiped out, a US district
judge has ruled.
The judge based his decision on the fact that a dead defendant could not be
punished.
Lay was in the process
of appealing his sentence when he died.
His lawyers argued the conviction should be overturned following his death,
citing a 2004 appeals court ruling that the state could not punish a dead
defendant or their estate unless their case had been heard on appeal.
Enron went bankrupt in 2001 with debts of $31.8bn (£18bn), leaving 4,000
people out of work.