Stodder seeks new trial

John Stodder, the former Fleishman-Hillard executive convicted last month of wire fraud in the exaggerated-billings case, filed motions today seeking acquittal or a new trial, alleging the government failed to prove its case. "The government had the burden to prove that Mr. Stodder intended to defraud Fleishman’s clients. The government failed to prove beyond a reasonable double that Mr. Stodder ever had the requisite fraudulent intent," his attorneys led by Jan Handzlik at Howrey argued in seeking a new trial. "In any event, the weight of the evidence supported a finding of good faith by Mr. Stodder. No former Fleishman employee ever testified that they believed that Mr. Stodder was anything other than reputable, respected and otherwise well-regarded." Other grounds too, of course. No comment on the Stodder-blog, as expected.