The federal judge who turned the stock options prosecution of a current and former Broadcom Corp. executives on its ear is set to address some loose ends in the matter on Thursday.
Judge Cormac J. Carney is set to ask federal prosecutors if they plan to proceed with an appeal in two dismissed cases against Broadcom’s cofounders, Henry Nicholas and Henry Samueli.
Prosecutors earlier this month filed a motion of appeal, an initial move toward getting approval for an appeal from Washington, D.C.
The prosecutors could seek to appeal the December dismissal of charges against Samueli, who recently resumed an executive post at Broadcom, and former chief executive Nicholas, who left the chipmaker in 2003.
In a set of stunning moves last month, Carney threw out cases against the cofounders as well as former Broadcom financial chief Bill Ruehle because of a court finding of prosecutor misconduct and a lack of evidence that the executives violated securities laws.
The judge also threw out a Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit against them.
His dismissals prompted prosecutors earlier this month to drop drug charges against Nicholas that came about from their probe of options at Broadcom.
On Thursday, Carney is set to accept or deny the government’s request to dismiss drug charges against Nicholas.
The judge also is expected to ask prosecutors why government civil claims against Nicholas’ homes and a jet should go forward in light of their request to dismiss the drug charges.
The claims stem from a 2008 lawsuit against Nicholas that attempted to seize and file liens on his properties in Newport Coast and Las Vegas in connection with alleged drug distribution charges.
Carney also is set to review the government’s case against former human resources executive Nancy Tullos, who has asked the court to toss out her guilty plea in light of the prosecutors’ misconduct.
In 2007, prosecutors struck a deal with Tullos, in which she pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction of justice in the stock options probe.
Tullos, who left Broadcom in 2003, agreed to pay more than $1.3 million to settle civil charges with the SEC.
In December, Carney throw out a plea deal between prosecutors and Samueli, who had agreed to plead guilty to one count of lying to investigators.
In early 2007, Broadcom restated several years of financial results to reflect $2.2 billion in charges for misdated stock options, the highest restatement bill of any company involved in the options issue.
