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'I will fight the charges until I die'
The Times
By James Doran
April 11, 2006

Jeffrey Skilling takes the stand in an attempt to clear his name over the collapse of Enron. James Doran reports.

JEFFREY SKILLING told a packed courtroom yesterday that he would fight until he died to prove his innocence, as the former chief executive of Enron took the witness stand for the first time to defend himself.

Mr Skilling, who is charged with 28 counts of fraud and conspiracy related to the record-breaking bankruptcy of Enron, faces a theoretical life sentence if he is found guilty.

He told the court that he was "a little nervous" before proclaiming firmly that he is "absolutely innocent".

"I guess that in some ways my life is on the line, so I am somewhat nervous," he said.

Dan Petrocelli, Mr Skilling's lawyer, asked him why he had not reached a settlement with prosecutors, like other Enron employees who had given evidence earlier in the trial. Mr Skilling replied that he believed "the vast majority" of those who had pleaded guilty to crimes at Enron were innocent and that it was not in his nature to give up without a fight. "I will fight those charges until the day I die," he said.

The courtroom in Houston, Texas, was busier than usual yesterday as crowds turned out to see what is considered to be the make-or-break testimony of the trial.

Mr Skilling's wife, Rebecca, his children and his ex-wife filled the front benches in the courtroom as the former Enron chief, dressed in a dark grey suit and patterned blue tie, began his testimony. Mrs Skilling appeared to wipe away tears as her husband took the oath to tell the truth.

Much of the morning's testimony centred on why Mr Skilling left his top job at Enron in 2001, just months before the fraud was revealed and the company nosedived into bankruptcy.

Mr Skilling said that a fatal accident at an Enron plant had changed his life and led him to value time away from work with his family. "It said to me: 'Life is short,' " he told the court.

He also said that his obsession with running Enron had led him to "burn-out" as an executive. "Some people would say I was obsessed with Enron...it takes a very serious toll on your personal life...I reached a point where I was tired," he said.

Later in the day Mr Skilling told how the news of Enron's collapse had sparked a personal crisis. He said that when he had heard in October 2001 that the energy company had tapped out its $3 billion lines of credit, he started to drink and later sought treatment from a psychiatrist.

"It was a little embarrassing, I started drinking," Mr Skilling said, when asked what he did after reading of Enron's trouble in a newspaper. "My fiancee and I went out to dinner and had some wine and stuff and I just started drinking...I cried. I did not really recover the rest of the weekend."

Mr Skilling then testified that friends urged him to get legal advice and some psychiatric help. "I think I got the psychiatrist before I got the lawyer," the former Enron chief told the court.

Jake Zamansky, a Wall Street lawyer who specialises in white-collar crime, said that the decision to put Mr Skilling on the stand was a signal that the defence was worried about the outcome of the case.

"This is a desperate gamble by the defence," Mr Zamansky said. "Experience has shown in these complex white-collar cases that putting the defendant on the stand in this way is a measure of last resort."

Mr Skilling's testimony is expected to last about a week and will be followed by evidence from Ken Lay, the former Enron chairman charged with six counts of fraud and conspiracy. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

The case continues.

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