Former iSoft bosses in limbo after jury discharged
A TRIAL of three bosses of healthcare software provider iSoft has ended with no verdict being reached.
The jury in the trial at Southwark Crown Court has now been discharged, the Financial Services Authority said.
The accused, former chief executive Tim Whiston, 41, from Lymm, ex-chief operating officer Steve Graham, 48, from Knutsford and 45-year-old John Whelan from Cheadle Hulme, will now have to wait to see if they will face a retrial.
The FSA, which led the prosecution, said a hearing had been scheduled for September 7 when a decision would be revealed if a retrial would be sought.
The trio were alleged to have made misleading statements about the company’s revenues, contrary to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and the Criminal Law Act 1977
All three denied the charge. The offences are alleged to have been carried out between October, 2003 and July, 2006.
A fourth former iSoft executive, co-founder Patrick Cryne, was also charged, but did not stand trial along with the others due to ill-health.
No one involved in the current proceedings has any involvement with iSoft today, which is now part of US IT services group CSC.
John Whelan’s lawyer, Anthony Barnfather, head of regulatory at Manchester law firm Pannone, said his client was “completely broken” by the pressure of the case.
He said: “This case is now in its seventh year. The facts that relate to the case are nearly 10 years ago and a conclusion does not seem likely for another year.
“John Whelan describes himself as ‘completely broken’ by the unrelenting pressure brought about by this matter subsuming his life since 2006.”
Mr Barnfather anticipates that any re-trial would begin around Easter next year. He stated his client did not wish to comment other than he maintains his innocence.
The jury were discharged after failing to reach a verdict after 57 hours and 41 minutes of deliberations. The trial had lasted more than three-and-a-half-months.
