The last battle of the decade-long legal war over the alleged crimes at Enron Corp. is poised to come to an end.
Enron’s incarcerated former president Jeffrey Skilling and the Justice Department have reached an agreement that would cut his federal prison sentence to as little 14 years from 24 years. As part of the agreement, Mr. Skilling would halt further attempts to have his conviction overturned. Some $40 million seized from him as part of the case would also be freed up for distribution to Enron victims.
Mr. Skilling, currently in a Colorado prison after his 2006 conviction for conspiracy and fraud, has already spent more than six years in custody. The new sentence, outlined in a government filing made Wednesday in Houston federal court, has to be approved by the case’s presiding federal judge, Sim Lake. Court records indicate that the jurist has been taking part recently in telephone conference calls between the two sides.
The filing said the agreement calls for a sentence with the range of 168 months to 210 months. Under federal rules, an inmate can have a sentence reduced by up to 15% for good behavior.
The agreement effectively ends “this long-running litigation” and provides “finality to victims and the public,” the government filling said.
“The proposed agreement brings certainty and finality to a long painful process,” said Mr. Skilling’s lead attorney, Daniel Petrocelli in a written statement. He added that the recommended new sentence for his client “would still be more than double any other Enron defendant, all of whom have long been out of prison” and would give Mr. Skilling “the chance to get back a meaningful part of his life.”
The Justice Department raised the possibility of a deal last month when it notified victims of the Enron scandal that it was considering an agreement with Mr. Skilling regarding matters in connection with his sentence. The filing didn’t elaborate on those issues. Such notifications occur in major fraud cases so victims can have an opportunity to be heard regarding a defendant’s sentencing. It isn’t yet clear when the resentencing hearing will be held.
Write to John Emshwiller at [email protected]
Enron’s incarcerated former president Jeffrey Skilling and the Justice Department have reached an agreement that would cut his federal prison sentence to as little 14 years from 24 years. As part of the agreement, Mr. Skilling would halt further attempts to have his conviction overturned. Some $40 million seized from him as part of the case would also be freed up for distribution to Enron victims.
Mr. Skilling, currently in a Colorado prison after his 2006 conviction for conspiracy and fraud, has already spent more than six years in custody. The new sentence, outlined in a government filing made Wednesday in Houston federal court, has to be approved by the case’s presiding federal judge, Sim Lake. Court records indicate that the jurist has been taking part recently in telephone conference calls between the two sides.
The filing said the agreement calls for a sentence with the range of 168 months to 210 months. Under federal rules, an inmate can have a sentence reduced by up to 15% for good behavior.
The agreement effectively ends “this long-running litigation” and provides “finality to victims and the public,” the government filling said.
“The proposed agreement brings certainty and finality to a long painful process,” said Mr. Skilling’s lead attorney, Daniel Petrocelli in a written statement. He added that the recommended new sentence for his client “would still be more than double any other Enron defendant, all of whom have long been out of prison” and would give Mr. Skilling “the chance to get back a meaningful part of his life.”
The Justice Department raised the possibility of a deal last month when it notified victims of the Enron scandal that it was considering an agreement with Mr. Skilling regarding matters in connection with his sentence. The filing didn’t elaborate on those issues. Such notifications occur in major fraud cases so victims can have an opportunity to be heard regarding a defendant’s sentencing. It isn’t yet clear when the resentencing hearing will be held.
Write to John Emshwiller at [email protected]