Jaded jurors and genial joking
Fortune Senior writers Peter Elkind and Bethany McLean blog on the trial.
 HOUSTON, Texas - Peter Elkind and Bethany McLean literally wrote the book ("The Smartest Guys in the Room") on Enron's collapse. Here's what they are seeing at trial .... Boiling down and brushing off
Opening arguments on Tuesday in the Enron trial -- two hours for the government; two hours each for defendants Jeff Skilling and Ken Lay -- offered mirror-opposite visions of Enron, with the prosecution and defense, respectively, portraying the business as a "ticking time bomb" and "a wonderful company...a shining star."
There were a few intriguing glimpses of new information in the feds' case. But the most dramatic thing about government's opening was its success in boiling down the complex Enron disaster into a digestible tale with an overarching theme. "This is a simple case," prosecutor John Hueston told the jury, over and over. "It's not about accounting. It's about lies and choices." The best evidence that the feds are serious about avoiding getting stuck in the weeds (a tendency that proved disastrous in last year's three-month Enron Broadband mistrial), rested in the fact that the government didn't use all its allotted time to complete opening arguments, wrapping up in a brisk 105 minutes. By contrast, defense guns Daniel Petrocelli (for Skilling) and Michael Ramsey repeatedly chafed at their time constraints, and embraced the virtues of bewildering accounting complication. "I want you to go there," Petrocelli declared at one point. "I want you to go everywhere...It is about accountants -- and accounting issues." A long, complicated trial, of course -- and this case is already expected to last at least four months -- invariably confuses jurors, increasing the prospects for generating reasonable doubt. Personable personalities
Despite a close cooperation in trial strategy, Lay and Skilling have shown flashes of their contrasting personalities. Neither former CEO is a fan of our Enron book, "The Smartest Guys in the Room." And Skilling, never much good at hiding his feelings, made a point of offering a sly jibe, sidling up to each of us during a break in the courtroom proceedings, to offer the same remark: "You certainly look prosperous. Your book must have sold quite well." Lay, as always, was genial, greeting us as he did other journalists, with a broad smile and a handshake. The media jam for Monday's jury selection eased a bit on Tuesday, though reporters who really wanted seats in the courtroom (as opposed to a separate courthouse room offering a closed-circuit video feed) sent paid line-holders (in one case, at $50 an hour) as early as 3 a.m. The hometown Houston Chronicle has provided saturation coverage, including three separate online blogs. Among the pre-dawn arrivals Tuesday was the paper's sleepy-eyed fashion writer, who is preparing an analysis of the courtroom stars' sartorial splendor -- such as it is. (Grey suits are the uniform of choice.) Amid the very high-priced legal talent at the defense table is one lawyer working pro bono: Elizabeth Lay Vittor, the defendant's daughter. Vittor has long been an important, highly protective counselor -- legal and otherwise -- to her embattled father, sitting in on media interviews and legal strategy sessions. She also provided him with a rare applause line at his coolly received December 13 speech before a civic group in Houston: Lay began his talk by announcing that Vittor had just given birth to his 12th grandchild. Six weeks later, she's back on duty. How to make sure you don't get stuck on jury duty ...
Much of Monday's rapid-fire jury selection, presided over by hyper-efficient federal trial judge Sim Lake, took place out of public earshot, in whispered questioning of prospects by judge and lawyers at the bench, muffled by the hiss of a white-noise machine. A court reporter's transcript of those conversations, released later, offers insight into the process of selecting 12 jurors and four alternates from a pool of 96 prospects. "I would dearly love to sit on this jury," declared juror No. 255, even while acknowledging his inability to be impartial. "I would love to claim responsibility, at least 1/12th of the responsibility, for putting these sons of bitches away for the rest of their lives." The juror, a machinist, admitted having followed press coverage of the case -- and having watched a DVD of "The Smartest Guys in the Room" the previous evening. As the judge prepared to excuse the juror for cause, prosecutor Cliff Stricklin chimed in: "Your honor, with sufficient time, I probably could rehabilitate him." " "Yes, in about a week," replied the judge. "255 is excused." Other jurors were less enthusiastic, pleading to be released because of jobs, too many children, or health considerations. Juror No. 254, for example, begged off for a herniated disk, future plans for surgery, and pain medication, noting "there's times I'm not alert." Another juror fell by the wayside after announcing her neighbor was Ken Lay's personal accountant. No. 193 knew a retired minister on the defense witness list. "How do you know him?" the judge asked. "He married me." "Okay," replied Lake. "I'm not going to ask anything about that." "Okay," the juror replied. "Turned out okay." Judge Lake, highly impatient with coatroom showboating, was equally firm in private. "Have a seat, Mr. Ramsey," he scolded Lay's attorney at one point. "I'm not going to say it again." At another point Petrocelli needed a java fix. "Do we have time to get coffee? How long are your breaks?" he asked. "They're 15," the judge replied. "They're timed to the second." ... and how to make sure you do
Juror #84, the wife of a former Houston police lieutenant, made it clear that it was possible, even in Houston, to find prospects who hadn't read a thing about Enron. Asked about her reading habits, she said she subscribed to the newspaper, but didn't "want to read that stuff." What did she read? Lake asked. "...Do you really want to know what I read in the paper?" "Yes." "Okay. I get up at 4 or 4:30 and I do Bible study. When I go over the newspaper, I pray over the newspaper articles....I don't read the comics. I read the recipes." She was selected for the jury and will help decide the Enron CEOs' fate. _____________________________
For full trial coverage, go to CNNMoney.com's special report. |
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