Tensions flared again Thursday in the criminal trial of Arthur Andersen, and a Texas agency took the first step toward barring the firm from practicing in the state.
Judge Melinda Harmon of US District Court at one point accused Rusty Hardin, Andersen's lead lawyer, of being "so off-base, it's unbelievable" while Hardin in turn told the judge that if she failed to understand his argument at one point, she was "on a different planet."
Thursday's witnesses in the trial described the approximate weight in pounds of Enron-related documents that were shredded by Andersen employees last fall as prosecutors tried to establish the volume of material that was destroyed. That shredding is the basis for the criminal charge of obstruction of justice that the government leveled at the firm in March.
Separately, the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy, which permits accountants to practice in the state, took a first step Thursday toward revoking Andersen's license. Such a move would most likely lead additional clients based in Texas to switch to another auditor. Andersen has already lost hundreds of clients since it was implicated in the collapse of Enron.
The board's action is regrettable, said Patrick Dorton, a spokesman for Andersen. "We are in a trial that has demonstrated that Andersen people were trying to do the right thing last fall," he said. "It's disappointing that the board has reached a premature conclusion before the end of the trial."
At that trial, lawyers for each side sparred over courtroom tactics in a discussion with the judge held outside the hearing of the jury, as a prosecutor, Samuel Buell, accused Hardin of trying "this case outside the bounds of the rules" and asked Harmon to limit the scope of his questions and comments before the jury.
Hardin responded derisively to the request. "I've never seen a group of government lawyers or any other lawyers be such whiney little babies and such obstructionist-type objections, and they have repeatedly in this case tried to keep the truth from the jury," he said.
Prosecutors tried to establish the volume of shredding at Andersen last fall through an assortment of witnesses Thursday afternoon. The government called Steven Willard, president and owner of City Central Courier, which had a contract to ferry documents from Andersen's Houston offices. Willard testified that his company picked up several trunks, each weighing 45kg, from Andersen's offices in October.
Next, Sharon Thibaut, supervisor of the records department at Andersen's Houston office, testified that Andersen sent as many as 20 such trunks containing about a tonne of paper -- to be shredded over three days in October. Finally, Michael Chase, the general manager of Shred-It, testified that his company spent several hours shredding documents from Andersen during roughly the same period.
The next significant procedural battle will take place today, when prosecutors and lawyers for Andersen will argue before the judge, outside the presence of the jury, about the instructions the jury should receive. Prosecutors argued Thursday that the jury should be told that several Andersen employees did not testify during the trial because they invoked their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
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