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Enron's Jeffrey Skilling: Govt Agrees to Substantial Sentence Cut

The Government and Enron defendant Jeffrey Skilling have filed an agreement with the Court for Skilling's sentence to be reduced from 24 years (292 months)to somewhere between 14 and 17 years (168 to 210 months.) He will get credit for the time he served since December 13, 2006. (He may also get another six weeks credit for time spent on home confinement before he reported to prison, but that will be up to the Bureau of Prisons.)

I've uploaded the 7 page agreement here. [More...]

Skilling's sentence was vacated by the court of appeals in 2009 and the matter remanded for resentencing. His revised guidelines are 188 - 235 months, and the Government has agreed to give him an extra one point reduction in his offense level, bringing the guidelines to 168 - 210 months. So long as the Judge resentences within that range, neither party can appeal. Skilling is not allowed to ask for less than 168 months.

Why the extra point downward variance?The Government thinks enough time has been spent on this case:

The investigation and prosecution of the defendant has been ongoing for more than ten years. The Government has invested extraordinary resources into this case during a lengthy investigation, pre-trial litigation, trial, and extensive post-trial litigation before the District Court, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court....In the absence of this Agreement, the parties anticipate substantial ongoing litigation.

Another big factor: Skilling has agreed to stop fighting the restitution order entered at his original sentencing. The Government says it has already collected $40 million, but until the litigation is over, it can't distribute the money to victims.

According to the agreement, Skilling still wants to get into RDAP, BOP's residential drug treatment program. (If he does, he could earn up to another year off his sentence.)

Another request by Skilling will also be left to the discretion of Bureau of Prisons: His classification as a "broad publicity" inmate pursuant to 28 C.F.R. § 524.72, and the Central Inmate Monitoring System.

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