SCOTUS Limits Honest Services Law

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Jun 24, 2010 3:25PM

The Supreme Court weakened the "Honest Services" fraud law today, saying the law was too vague. Local figures who had been charged, in part, under the law include former Sun-Times owner Conrad Black and former governor Rod Blagojevich. Both of those cases, however, included other charges as well (the feds even prepped for this by re-indicting Blago). Black's conviction includes several other charges so the SCOTUS wouldn't overturn his conviction, leaving that, instead, to the appeals court process. The main argument in the case was brought by former Enron CEO Jeff Skilling. Meanwhile, Judge Zagel turned down a request by Blago's defense to continue the trial until next week, arguing John Harris' testimony falls under the honest services umbrella. The SCOTUS ruling is expected to have little effect on the trial thanks to the earlier re-indictment.