By PURVA PATEL, HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Expert witnesses working for R. Allen Stanford's defense have resigned because they haven't been paid, according to a request made by the former billionaire's lawyers to postpone his trial.
Last week, U.S. District Judge David Hittner rejected a previous request for a 90-day continuance in the trial of Stanford, who is accused of swindling investors out of $7 billion. The latest request asks the judge to reconsider and notes Stanford - who was only recently deemed competent to assist his attorneys - needs time to go through the evidence in the case in order to assist in his defense.
So far, all expenses submitted to the district court have been within the budget previously submitted to the court, but experts haven't been paid for four months, according to a recent motion filed by Stanford's government- appointed lawyers.
Limitations on budget
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has also informed the attorneys that it intends to limit the expert budget moving forward and mandate that all payments be made after the trial ends, according to the motion.
"Counsel was informed by all experts that they cannot continue to assist the defense under the new parameters. ... All experts have therefore tendered their resignations to counsel and have ceased all work relating to this matter," the motion states.
The attorneys, therefore, can't prepare for trial or meet the court's deadlines, they argue.
Robert Scardino, an attorney for Stanford, declined to comment Monday.
While the district court usually handles approval of payments for indigent defendants like Stanford, the circuit court may step in when a case's budget looks like it will exceed the allocated funds, said Philip Hilder, a Houston attorney and former federal prosecutor.
There is usually an arbitrary lag time of weeks or months before payments are made after being submitted, but in such a time-consuming case, experts aren't necessarily going to "take it on good faith that they're going to get paid," Hilder said.
Ineffective counsel?
"The defense is in a difficult position because this particular case is expensive and yet they have a duty and obligation to zealously defend Mr. Stanford," Hilder said. "Unless the defense can properly and adequately utilize expert testimony, Mr. Stanford may have a claim for ineffective counsel."
Previously, Stanford's lawyers have claimed he suffered brain damage in a jailhouse attack that rendered him unable to assist in his own defense. His original trial date in January 2011 was postponed so he could undergo a series of evaluations at a federal prison hospital.
Hittner ruled last month that Stanford was competent, denied the lawyers' first request for more time to prepare for trial and ordered jury selection to begin Jan. 23.
Stanford, 61, who headed Houston-based Stanford Financial Group, maintains he is innocent of the 14 charges he faces.
He has been held without bail since his June 2009 arrest.
A federal indictment alleges Stanford and others defrauded investors who bought certificates of deposit issued by Stanford's bank in the Caribbean island nation of Antigua.
Three co-defendants are free on bail and will be tried later, and a fourth is fighting extradition from Antigua.
Stanford Group's chief financial officer was charged separately, pleaded guilty and is expected to testify if the case comes to trial.
Showing posts with label delay. Show all posts
Showing posts with label delay. Show all posts
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
Thursday, 29 December 2011
Allen Stanford’s Bid to Delay January Trial for Investment Fraud Is Denied
R. Allen Stanford’s request for more time to prepare to face charges he led a $7 billion investment fraud scheme was denied by the judge who declared him mentally fit for trial. Jury selection will begin in Houston federal court on Jan. 23.
“This case needs to be tried,” U.S. District Judge David Hittner said in an eight-page ruling today. “This trial will decide not just whether Stanford is guilty of the criminal charges, but also whether hundreds of millions of dollars of investor funds currently frozen may be forfeited and returned to his alleged victims.”
Hittner ruled Dec. 22 that Stanford has sufficiently recovered from a head injury suffered in a jailhouse assault and an addiction to anxiety medications prescribed to him by prison doctors after the attack.
The judge delayed Stanford’s original trial date last January and ordered him into a prison rehabilitation program after finding Stanford’s medical conditions had made him incompetent to understand the proceedings or assist his defense team.
“Our ability to defend our client has been consistently limited by matters the court is well aware of,” Ali Fazel, Stanford’s lead lawyer, said in an e-mailed statement today about the ruling. “We are now reviewing our options.”
Flight Risk
Stanford, 61, has been detained as a flight risk since his June 2009 indictment on charges he defrauded investors of more than $7 billion through allegedly bogus certificates of deposit at his Antiguan bank. The former financier has denied all wrongdoing.
Stanford’s attorneys had asked to delay the trial until late April to give them more time to review millions of pages of company documents with Stanford. They argued they’d had only a few days to review documents with Stanford while he was clear- headed. They said they needed to search beyond the limited set of papers the government has identified as critical to the case.
“The accused’s position is that this case is about the flow of money” through Antigua-based Stanford International Bank and more than 100 related Stanford companies scattered around the globe, Fazel said in a Dec. 27 court filing.
“Therefore, the defense in this case does not merely require knowledge of one company as the government contends, but rather, depends upon knowledge of the finances and operations” of all the companies, Fazel said in the filing.
Thousands of Investors
Prosecutors, who opposed a lengthy delay, said a four-to- six-week extension wasn’t unreasonable given the time Stanford’s lawyers had needed to devote to his recent competency hearing. They said further delay wasn’t fair to thousands of Stanford investors, whose recovery of funds from Stanford’s holdings is stalled until his criminal case is concluded.
ustice Department spokeswoman Laura Sweeney declined to comment on the ruling.
The government contends Stanford’s bank operated as a Ponzi scheme, in which early investors were paid above-market interest rates with funds taken from later investors.
Prosecutors claim Stanford siphoned off more than $1 billion to fund a lavish lifestyle of private jets, yachts, multiple mansions and a private Caribbean island.
“This case needs to be tried,” U.S. District Judge David Hittner said in an eight-page ruling today. “This trial will decide not just whether Stanford is guilty of the criminal charges, but also whether hundreds of millions of dollars of investor funds currently frozen may be forfeited and returned to his alleged victims.”
Hittner ruled Dec. 22 that Stanford has sufficiently recovered from a head injury suffered in a jailhouse assault and an addiction to anxiety medications prescribed to him by prison doctors after the attack.
The judge delayed Stanford’s original trial date last January and ordered him into a prison rehabilitation program after finding Stanford’s medical conditions had made him incompetent to understand the proceedings or assist his defense team.
“Our ability to defend our client has been consistently limited by matters the court is well aware of,” Ali Fazel, Stanford’s lead lawyer, said in an e-mailed statement today about the ruling. “We are now reviewing our options.”
Flight Risk
Stanford, 61, has been detained as a flight risk since his June 2009 indictment on charges he defrauded investors of more than $7 billion through allegedly bogus certificates of deposit at his Antiguan bank. The former financier has denied all wrongdoing.
Stanford’s attorneys had asked to delay the trial until late April to give them more time to review millions of pages of company documents with Stanford. They argued they’d had only a few days to review documents with Stanford while he was clear- headed. They said they needed to search beyond the limited set of papers the government has identified as critical to the case.
“The accused’s position is that this case is about the flow of money” through Antigua-based Stanford International Bank and more than 100 related Stanford companies scattered around the globe, Fazel said in a Dec. 27 court filing.
“Therefore, the defense in this case does not merely require knowledge of one company as the government contends, but rather, depends upon knowledge of the finances and operations” of all the companies, Fazel said in the filing.
Thousands of Investors
Prosecutors, who opposed a lengthy delay, said a four-to- six-week extension wasn’t unreasonable given the time Stanford’s lawyers had needed to devote to his recent competency hearing. They said further delay wasn’t fair to thousands of Stanford investors, whose recovery of funds from Stanford’s holdings is stalled until his criminal case is concluded.
ustice Department spokeswoman Laura Sweeney declined to comment on the ruling.
The government contends Stanford’s bank operated as a Ponzi scheme, in which early investors were paid above-market interest rates with funds taken from later investors.
Prosecutors claim Stanford siphoned off more than $1 billion to fund a lavish lifestyle of private jets, yachts, multiple mansions and a private Caribbean island.
Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Government Opposes Stanford Bid to Delay Trial
Scott Cohn (CNBC)
Federal prosecutors say a bid by accused Ponzi mastermind Allen Stanford to delay his criminal trial until late April ignores the interests of thousands of investors in the alleged $7 billion scam.
Attorneys for Stanford, who last week was ruled competent to stand trial following eight months in drug treatment, asked for the delay to give their client more time to prepare. He faces 14 counts in the scheme centered on allegedly bogus certificates of deposit. The trial is currently set for January 23.
"The public's interest in a speedy trial is particularly acute in this case in which thousands of individuals who purchased CDs from Stanford have lost billions of dollars," writes Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg Costa in a court filing today. "This trial will decide not just whether Stanford is guilty of the criminal charges but also whether hundreds of millions of dollars of investor funds currently frozen in foreign countries will be forfeited and returned to the victims."
Prosecutors say the alleged Stanford fraud is the second largest in U.S. history, surpassed only by Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme.
U.S. District Judge David Hittner has promised a ruling this week on Stanford's motion for a three-month continuance.
While Costa said the government does not oppose a shorter delay of four to six weeks, he says a longer delay ignores the interests of the public and the alleged victims.
Those investors--some 28,000 of them--have often found themselves lost in the shuffle of a case that has been marked by bizarre twists and unusual delays.
Stanford was indicted in June, 2009 and detained as a flight risk, but he was severely beaten by another inmate and then became addicted to prescription drugs while in custody. On Thursday, Hittner ruled Stanford has sufficiently recovered from his injuries and his addiction, and is fit for trial.
Meanwhile, the investors are locked in a dispute with the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which insures U.S. brokerage accounts, over whether their losses should be covered.
With the insurance coverage and Stanford's trial still undecided, the investors have recovered just pennies on the dollar, nearly three years after the alleged scam was first exposed.
Federal prosecutors say a bid by accused Ponzi mastermind Allen Stanford to delay his criminal trial until late April ignores the interests of thousands of investors in the alleged $7 billion scam.
"The public's interest in a speedy trial is particularly acute in this case in which thousands of individuals who purchased CDs from Stanford have lost billions of dollars," writes Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg Costa in a court filing today. "This trial will decide not just whether Stanford is guilty of the criminal charges but also whether hundreds of millions of dollars of investor funds currently frozen in foreign countries will be forfeited and returned to the victims."
Prosecutors say the alleged Stanford fraud is the second largest in U.S. history, surpassed only by Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme.
U.S. District Judge David Hittner has promised a ruling this week on Stanford's motion for a three-month continuance.
While Costa said the government does not oppose a shorter delay of four to six weeks, he says a longer delay ignores the interests of the public and the alleged victims.
Those investors--some 28,000 of them--have often found themselves lost in the shuffle of a case that has been marked by bizarre twists and unusual delays.
Stanford was indicted in June, 2009 and detained as a flight risk, but he was severely beaten by another inmate and then became addicted to prescription drugs while in custody. On Thursday, Hittner ruled Stanford has sufficiently recovered from his injuries and his addiction, and is fit for trial.
Meanwhile, the investors are locked in a dispute with the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which insures U.S. brokerage accounts, over whether their losses should be covered.
With the insurance coverage and Stanford's trial still undecided, the investors have recovered just pennies on the dollar, nearly three years after the alleged scam was first exposed.