Enron
Although this is the eighth week of the Enron trial starring Jeff Skilling and Ken Lay, and the prosecution is still about a week away from resting its case, tomorrow and the first couple of days of next week could be the most important days of the entire trial.
For the past two days, former Enron Treasurer Ben Glisan has been testifying for the government. And, as the Houston Chronicle's trial blog summary of his testimony makes clear, Glisan seems to be sticking it to the defendants, especially Lay.
Although chief crook Andrew Fastow has already testified, and both Skilling and Lay have made clear that they will testify in their own defenses, the cross-examination of Glisan that begins tomorrow is likely to be crucial for the jurors. Of all the major Enron players who have testified, it is Glisan alone who does not have a plea deal allowing him to be sentenced after his testimony or who, like Fastow, got a better deal in exchange for the promise of testimony helpful to the prosecution. Instead, Glisan pleaded guilty in 2003 to a conspiracy charge, was sentenced to five years, and went straight to prison.
The defense -- especially Lay lawyer Michael Ramsey -- has been hammering witnesses who took plea deals and making the obvious and plausible point to the jurors that people who have something to gain from their testimony ought not to be believed. In addition, Fastow's history of deceit makes it easy to argue to the jurors that they should not believe Fastow if he testified that the Sun rises in the East. Then, of course, still to come are the defendants themselves. While their credibility and ability to persuade the jurors that their story is the truthful one will obviously be important, sometimes jurors treat the star witnesses (Skilling, Law, Fastow) as canceling each other out and instead look for the corroborating testimony and evidence.
Which is what makes Glisan so important. He was a senior Enron official, he worked directly with or had very frequent contacts with Fastow, Lay, and Skilling, as Treasurer he knew about all the deals and the numbers -- in short, he was there. And he didn't take a deal, which could give his credibility a real boost in the eyes of the jurors.
All of which means that the defense has to come at him hard when the cross-examination starts tomorrow morning. Because if the jurors believe Ben Glisan, Skilling and Lay are in serious trouble.
For the past two days, former Enron Treasurer Ben Glisan has been testifying for the government. And, as the Houston Chronicle's trial blog summary of his testimony makes clear, Glisan seems to be sticking it to the defendants, especially Lay.
Although chief crook Andrew Fastow has already testified, and both Skilling and Lay have made clear that they will testify in their own defenses, the cross-examination of Glisan that begins tomorrow is likely to be crucial for the jurors. Of all the major Enron players who have testified, it is Glisan alone who does not have a plea deal allowing him to be sentenced after his testimony or who, like Fastow, got a better deal in exchange for the promise of testimony helpful to the prosecution. Instead, Glisan pleaded guilty in 2003 to a conspiracy charge, was sentenced to five years, and went straight to prison.
The defense -- especially Lay lawyer Michael Ramsey -- has been hammering witnesses who took plea deals and making the obvious and plausible point to the jurors that people who have something to gain from their testimony ought not to be believed. In addition, Fastow's history of deceit makes it easy to argue to the jurors that they should not believe Fastow if he testified that the Sun rises in the East. Then, of course, still to come are the defendants themselves. While their credibility and ability to persuade the jurors that their story is the truthful one will obviously be important, sometimes jurors treat the star witnesses (Skilling, Law, Fastow) as canceling each other out and instead look for the corroborating testimony and evidence.
Which is what makes Glisan so important. He was a senior Enron official, he worked directly with or had very frequent contacts with Fastow, Lay, and Skilling, as Treasurer he knew about all the deals and the numbers -- in short, he was there. And he didn't take a deal, which could give his credibility a real boost in the eyes of the jurors.
All of which means that the defense has to come at him hard when the cross-examination starts tomorrow morning. Because if the jurors believe Ben Glisan, Skilling and Lay are in serious trouble.
posted by FCB at 9:16 PM
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