No trial delay for accused Ponzi schemer Stanford

Allen Stanford

(Reuters) – Allen Stanford, accused of running a $7.2  billion Ponzi scheme, today lost his bid for a  three-month delay in his criminal fraud trial, clearing the way  for jury selection to begin on Jan. 23.
U.S. District Judge David Hittner in Houston called the  public interest in a speedy trial “particularly acute.”
Hittner cited charges that Stanford deceived thousands of  investors into buying certificates of deposit from his Antiguan  bank, Stanford International Bank Ltd, leading to billions of  dollars of losses. He also noted that Stanford has been in  detention for 2-1/2 years since his June 2009 arrest.
“This case needs to be tried,” Hittner wrote.

Allen Stanford
Allen Stanford

Stanford had sought to delay the trial to late April. A  lawyer for Stanford did not immediately respond to a request for  comment.
Once considered a billionaire, Stanford, 61, had run the  Stanford Financial Group, and owned luxury homes in the  Caribbean, Houston and Miami.
The defendant now faces a 14-count indictment in one of the  largest white-collar fraud cases since Bernard Madoff was  arrested in December 2008 for his Ponzi scheme.
Criminal proceedings were delayed while Stanford was treated  for an addiction to anti-anxiety medication at the same North  Carolina federal correctional complex housing Madoff.
Last week, Hittner ruled that Stanford was competent to  stand trial.
Stanford’s lawyers had argued that their client still  suffers serious depression, as well as memory loss tied to a  brain injury suffered in a September 2009 jailhouse attack.
In today’s ruling rejecting a trial delay, Hittner said  Stanford has had “an extensive legal defense team,” having been  represented at various times by 14 different lawyers, and  “liberal” access to government evidence against him.
The judge also said a delay could add to already “massive”  legal bills. He said Stanford, who claims to be indigent, is  entitled to a “solid, capable, and competent defense,” not the  “deluxe or ‘perfect’ defense” that he might otherwise want.
Prosecutors had said they would not oppose a four- to  six-week trial delay, citing the competency hearing.
A Ponzi scheme is a fraud in which older investors are paid  with money from newer investors. Stanford also faces civil fraud  charges by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in a  separate case being handled in Dallas.
The criminal case is U.S. v. Stanford, U.S. District Court,  Southern District of Texas, No. 09-00342.