Tag: Joseph Nacchio (page 2)

The jury returned guilty verdicts Thursday on 19 of 42 counts of insider trading against former Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio.

I can't imagine sitting through the verdict, hearing 23 counts of "not guilty" one by one, only to be followed by 19 counts of guilty. Talk about an emotional rollercoaster.

As to my thoughts on the verdict, I've blogged the trial over at 5280.com and my analysis is here.

In a nutshell,

After live-blogging the Scooter Libby trial, it seemed natural to me to give it another try for the insider trading trial of former Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio. I live-blogged the jury selection, opening arguments and first day of testimony last week, over at 5280.com

David Kopel, writing in Saturday's Rocky Mountain News, has this review of internet trial coverage.

Denver criminal defense lawyer and civil liberties advocate Jeralyn Merritt runs the TalkLeft.com weblog, which sets a great example of how to write about legal issues in an intelligent way while still connecting with readers who haven't gone to law school. Merritt has been live-blogging the Nacchio trial for 5280 magazine's weblog, Elevated Voices.

She provides a running semi-transcript of courtroom events, in far greater detail than you can find anywhere else while the court is in session. She doesn't attend every day of the trial, but when she's there, Elevated Voices is the best Web site for up-to-the minute coverage.

The trial runs Monday through Thursday. This week I'll be there live-blogging Monday and Tuesday. TChris will be blogging here.

Yes, I changed my mind this morning and decided to live-blog another day at the Joseph Nacchio insider trading trial. I'm actually enjoying it now, so I will continue for most of the afternoon.

The transcript of yesterday's opening arguments is now available here(pdf).

You can read the live-blogging at 5280.

I did get formally introduced to Joe Nacchio and Herb Stern this morning. I'm sitting behind the Nacchio family in the courtroom today.

I only have one laptop battery so I can't stay in the courtroom the whole time because there are no electrical outlets for us. It's so much better in the courtroom than the media room where you only get a partial view and it's hard to hear. But better in the media room than nowhere.

This is mostly for the trial lawyers reading TalkLeft.

We all know how important it is to use opening statements as a vehicle to humanize our clients, to show a wrong has occurred and to convey the idea of their innocence of the charges against them.

Defense attorney Herb Stern (a former federal judge and prosecutor) did an excellent job in opening arguments today of humanizing his client, former Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio, charged with insider trading.

First, he told the jury, "I'm going to tell you something no one has ever known." Everyone, jurors and those of us in the media room, leaned forward. Big pause.

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The jury was sworn in this morning in the insider trading trial of Qwest former CEO Joseph Nacchio.

I'm over at 5280.com live-blogging opening arguments from the courthouse.

I'm in the courtroom at the trial of Qwest former CEO Joseph Nacchio. Jury selection is underway. The questioning is being done by Judge Edward Nottingham, not the lawyers.

The prospective jurors just filed in. I'll be putting the live blog posts over at 5280.com.

Denver is hosting a high-profile criminal trial beginning tomorrow. It's United States v. Joseph Nacchio. Nacchio is the former CEO of Qwest communications. He's charged with 42 counts of insider trading resulting from his sale of $101 million of Qwest stock in 2001. The Government alleges he sold the stock because he knew there were big problems with Qwest meeting its financial projections.

Nacchio says nonsense. He was over-invested in telecommunications stocks and these were planned, timed sales. Plus, and this is the novel part, by virtue of serving on some Homeland Security subcommittees, he was privy to classified information showing Qwest was in line for some big Government contracts which would have made Qwest a ton of money. Thus, he did not sell because he thought Qwest was doomed.

It's the state of mind defense (like Scooter Libby in a way.)

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I just got back from the courthouse picking up my press pass for 5280 to cover the trial of Qwest former CEO Joseph Nacchio which begins Monday. There will be a lot of national press folks in town for it, including Bloomberg News, the Wall St. Journal and NPR. The Rocky Mountain News and Denver Post will also be covering it.

Nacchio is charged with 42 counts of insider trading resulting from the sale of $100 million in Qwest stock in 2001. In 2000, Qwest was trading at $66.00 a share. In 2002, it was down to $5.00.

Qwest bought U.S. West in 2000.

The highlights for me will be opening statements and the testimony of those who accepted immunity or plea deals in exchange for cooperation against Nacchio.

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