The Latest From BNN

BNN's Amanda Lang reported that what caused the delay isn't certain as of now; no future delays are evident. There have been no comments from either prosecution or defense; in fact, they’ve been atypically tight-lipped, thanks to Judge St. Eve. She noted that the crowding publicity, which both Mr. and Mrs. Black have faced, do come with the territory in a trial such as this one; both, especially the latter party, should know that. Yesterday’s “procedural matters” were the striking of certain items from various submitted depositions, due to objections to some of their content.

[UPDATE: Csr. Cramer described the defendants as greedy and hubristic empire-builders in his opening statement. Also, BNN showed a statement from Mrs. Black, said by her this morning, in which she neither confirmed nor denied the specific content of those remarks of hers yesterday. She also said that she was referring to specific journalists, who "know who they are."]

[UPDATE 2: According to Lisa Oake, Csr. Genson "had the jury laughing" at the outset, and had continued with the observation that the prosecution was saying things that "just ain't true." According to BNN's Ms. Lang, the prosecutor said that Conrad Black wasn’t really the owner - even though he had owned a lot of it, she also noted. Neither the prosecution nor the defense called Black “Lord Black.” Csr. Genson also said that Black’s lifestyle and business life were “of a piece.”]

[UPDATE 3: According to the latest report from Ms. Lang, as of 5:50 EDT, there are 14 women and 4 men on the jury, with Caucasians predominating. The prosecution's opening statement was made “forcefully,” to compensate for the complexity of their case. Some transactions, according to Csr. Cramer, were “so fraudulent,” they were merely paper trades. Csr. Cramer also mentioned the trip to Bora Bora. The only opening statement of the defense, Csr. Genson's, was “less cogent,” according to Ms. Lang. According to Csr. Genson, everything was above-board in the Canwest deal; the other deals were orchestrated by Mr. Radler. There were no surprises today in the trial itself, except for a possible one for Canadians because of a cross-border difference in trial procedure: in Canada, the defense would open after the prosecution rests.]

[A Web news report on Cramer's opening statements, which adds details such as Csr. Gerson describing Black as "snotty" but innocent, is here. Another report, with quotes from Csr. Cramer and Csr. Genson's opening statements, is here. Sample quote, from Csr. Genson: "'David Radler (government's witness, the former No. 2 man in Black's organization) will come into this court and lie to you about Conrad Black.'" From Csr. Cramer, as lifted from the Financial Times: "We all know what a street crime looks like ... [This case is] exactly the same thing ... [except] they did it with memos and documents.'"]