The Galleon insider trading case went to the jury in the 8th week of the trial.  Galleon Group founder Raj Rajaratnam, 53, is charged with 14 counts of securities fraud and conspiracy.  Prosecutors have accused him of trading illegally in at 14 different stocks, making profits and avoiding losses totaling some $64 million.  Mr. Rajaratnam has pleaded guilty, saying he traded on legitimate research.

        U.S. District Judge Richard Howell Hands Case to the Jury.   "It is for you to decide whether the defendant acted in good faith, or not."   With respect to the credibility of witnesses, the judge urged the jurors to "size the person up, just as you would in any important matter."   The jury got the case at midday after being instructing them on the applicable law.  Prosecutors had used the morning for his final statement - a rebuttal to the closing argument of Mr. Rajaratnam's defense team. 

Juror #9, 56 years old, serves as foreman, selected by the other jurors at the start of the trial in March.  He's a self-described Bronx resident and graphic artist for Apple Inc.  During the afternoon, the jury sent the judge a note asking for defense exhibits relating to Mr. Rajaratnam's trading in Clearwire, a wireless networking company.  The jury was told it already had that evidence.  Jurors also asked to see documents prosecutors exhibited during their closing arguments to connect the dots about Mr. Rajaratnam's alleged illicit trading.  The jury didn't get those documents because they weren't formally introduced into evidence.

        If Convicted.   Judge Holwell spent about an hour and a half telling jurors how to evaluate the 5 counts of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and 9 counts of securities fraud against Mr. Rajaratnam.  Conviction of a single count of securities fraud carries a sentence of as many as 20 years;  up to 5 years for a conspiracy count.     [WSJournal, 4/26]