The Sentencing...The Statements and the Sentence

David Akin, on CTV NewsNet, is reporting on the victim-impact statements. One was from an institutional investor, who cliamed that Conrad jerked him around and lied to him to boot. Right after, Paula Todd noted that Conrad is walking a fine line: he can't veer from "my appeal is pending" to "I was hoosegowed."

[Historical note: In the Scopes trial, John Scopes was actually found guilty. The play based on it, Inherit the Wind, implicitly made the point that the judge basically had to find him guilty, given the relevant law at the time.]

As of 1:48 PM ET, Mr. Akin speculated that Conrad's defense counsel has recommended to Conrad that he keep it short. Three minutes later, James Morton suggested that Conrad's best bet is to stress his respect for the court system while disagreeing with the outcome in his case.

Conrad Black began speaking as of 1:53 PM ET. He did in fact stress that he never maligned either the judge or the jury, nor the system. The start-off was his averment that he does not wish to re-try the case. He finished with a "very profound apology" to the shareholders, expresed regret for his conduct, and complimented the judge. His speech lasted about a minute. Ms. Todd said that "he did exactly what he should have done." The judge is now saying that Conrad had committed a serious offense, but he has no record of prior convictions. Joan Crockatt, as of 1:57 PM ET, expressed surprise at Conrad's brevity.

According to Mr. Akin, right at that point, the judge also noted that Conrad's charitable activities does mean something, including the giving from corporate funds, and that her sentence will "promote respect for the law." It must "deter others," as reported by Mr. Akin. The judge also said that Mr. Radler is at least as culpable, but is entitled to a lesser sentence because he copped a plea. His entitled Mr. Radler to a lesser sentence, but not to a "vast discrepancy."


The sentence has just been announced for Conrad: 78 months, or 6 1/2 years. The judge added that she couldn't understand how someone of his stature could have done what he did. The judge added a fine of US$125,000. She also added a forfeiture amount of $6.1 million. (The prosecution has ten days to appeal the sentence, as they may do because she could be considered to have been lenient.) In addition, Conrad faces two years of unsupervised release subsequent to the sentence. He may be deported from the U.S. as a result of that release addition, according to Mr. Akin. The prosecution wanted 25 years; the defense wanted the same sentence that David Radler got. The bail matter has not been decided on yet.


Subsequent to the announcement, Mr. Akin reported that Conrad had prepared a 5,000-word statement, but declined to give it. Judge St. Eve thanked him for his compliment. As of 2:11 PM ET, Conrad's lawyers are arguing over the forfeiture amount. Long-time trial observer Hugh Totten said that Conrad got a good deal today, and that Conrad had little to gain through making a long statement. Csr. Totten also noted that Conrad hired the same lawyer who got Frank Quattrone off from an obstruction-of-justice charge at the appeal level. As of 2:15 PM ET, Mr. Akin reported that Conrad's lawyers are arging that he rates bail, and Csr. Totten noted that their arguments are not going to take an unexpected turn. After Csr. Totten was finished, Jacob Frenkel commented that the Quattrone case was quite different: the appeal worked because of errors of procedure committed by the trial judge. None were evident in this trial.

Conrad was denied bail. He is obliged to show up at the Eglin, Florida Penitentiary as of March 3rd. It's a lower-security penitentiary. Later, Ms. Crockatt mentioned the possibility of a Presidential pardon, but noted that it would most likely come when President Bush steps down as of Jan. 2009.

Formally, according to Wikipedia, Eglin Pen is "Federal Prison Camp,... Eglin, Florida." Informally, at least according to this blog, it's one of the "Club Fed"s.

As of 2:31 PM, Ms. Todd noted that one of Conrad's appelate lawyers will be Alan Dershowitz. Csr. Frenkel subsequently noted that the ambiguities of interpretation regarding "deprivation of honest services" may eventually arrive at the doorstep of the Supreme Court of the United States.

After he was finished, Ms. Todd reported on an unexpected - perhaps unprecedented - discussion amongst Conrad's fellow Lords in the U.K.: some have suggested that Conrad be stripped of his baronial title.