Enron jury ends 3rd day

HOUSTON - Jurors in the trial of former Enron chiefs Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling ended a third day of deliberations today without reaching a verdict, leaving a Houston courthouse as Lay took the witness stand to defend himself in a separate case.

The eight-woman, four-man panel was heard from only once, asking US District Judge Sim Lake for computer speakers as it considered the 34 counts of fraud and conspiracy that could send Lay and Skilling to prison for decades.

They are deliberating behind closed doors not far from Lake's ninth-floor courtroom, where Lay, 64, has gone back on trial for bank fraud in connection with US$75 million ($122.12 million) in personal loans.

While Skilling, 52, has not been spotted during the deliberations at the downtown Houston courthouse, Lay took to the witness stand today to deny he had lied to banks by falsely promising that he would not buy stock with the money.

The former Enron CEO was barred by banking regulations from using the US$75 million from those specific loans to buy stock because he had put up other securities as collateral -- a rule that prosecutors say he repeatedly violated.

Under questioning from his attorney, Ken Carroll, Lay quickly conceded that he used the money to purchase stock -- but insisted he was unaware of violating regulations.

"Your honor, there's no doubt that we did not fully comply with all of the provisions of these documents as we go back now and look at all of them, look at the purpose of these loans," Lay said.

Asked by Carroll if he ever "knowingly, intentionally" misled the banks, Lay responded: "I did not, nor would I have if I'd known what the facts were."

"I regret that I didn't have a lot more time to spend on my personal matters and perhaps this is one of the consequences of that," Lay said, echoing an argument by his attorneys that the busy executive often signed documents or had assistants affix his signature to them without reading them closely.

Lay was still on the witness stand when Lake recessed court for the afternoon and was scheduled to return on Tuesday for further testimony. The case, which is being heard without a jury at Lay's request, was expected to conclude by Tuesday afternoon and go to Lake for consideration.

Jurors were also expected to return on Tuesday to resume deliberations in the main fraud and conspiracy case against Skilling and Lay, which centres on accusations that the two men concealed Enron's crumbling finances as the energy giant spiraled toward bankruptcy in 2001.

In that case the two former business titans denied they took part in any illicit acts by subordinates, and both testified that Enron was healthy until negative media coverage and a conspiracy of predatory investors triggered a confidence crisis and a "run on the bank" that lead to its demise.

- REUTERS