An ambiguous e-mail message interrupted the career of one of Silicon Valley's most influential investment bankers, Frank Quattrone. During the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s, Quattrone was head of Credit Suisse First Boston's technology group.
When the federal government accused Quattrone of overseeing the destruction of documents, they cited his e-mail message as evidence. According to the criminal complaint, one memo e-mailed to hundreds of employees and allegedly authorized by Quattrone advised: "We strongly suggest that before you leave for the holidays, you should catch up on file cleaning."
Even with that ambiguous wording, a jury convicted Quattrone in September 2004 of obstruction of justice, obstructing regulators, and witness tampering. But an appeals court this year overturned the verdict (click here for PDF) and ordered a new trial, saying the jury had been given "erroneous instructions."
In August, Quattrone was essentially exonerated in a deal he reached with federal prosecutors. It ends his problems with the criminal justice system and means he can return to the banking business. He's already received accolades from T.J. Rodgers, chief executive of Cypress Semiconductor, who said all along that Quattrone was competent, honest and ethical--and that prosecutors were publicity-hungry and out of control.
Photo by NNDB.com
