Federal judge erases Lay's conviction

Washington: A federal judge has wiped out the criminal conviction of Enron Corp founder Kenneth L. Lay, ruling that his July 5 death denied him the chance to appeal a Houston jury's fraud and conspiracy verdict.

The ruling on Tuesday by US District Judge Sim Lake, who presided over the 16-week trial last spring, will make it tougher though by no means impossible for prosecutors and private plaintiffs who are trying to recover money from Lay's estate, legal experts said. A Justice Department spokesman said on Tuesday the government would continue to pursue restitution of $43.5 million (Dh160 million) from Lay's estate.

Lake also dismissed the original indictment under which Lay had been brought to trial. In a 13-page ruling, Lake cited a 2004 decision by the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals vacating the conviction of a defendant who died while his appeal was pending.

The Justice Department's Enron Task Force so feared this outcome that last month it unsuccessfully appealed to Congress to pass a law abolishing the legal doctrine under which Lake threw out Lay's conviction.