Scrushy defense challenges law aimed at CEOs

The defense team for Richard Scrushy made its case for dismissing three key charges against the former HealthSouth Corp. chief executive officer, who stands accused of directing a $2.7 billion accounting fraud scheme at the company. The three charges stem from the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, created in 2002 in the wake of Enron Corp. and other corporate scandals to hold CEOs personally liable for false financial reporting. Scrushy is the first to be charged with violating the law. In arguments Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Karen Bowdre in Birmingham, Ala., Scrushy attorney Thomas Sjoblom called the law "unconstitutional on its face," the Associated Press reported. The act is vague because it uses such phrases as "willfully certifies" and "fairly represents," Sjoblom said. "There is no way a person in Mr. Scrushy's position can look at this and say, 'If I do this, I know I'm engaging in criminal conduct,' " he said. Bowdre said she hoped to rule on the matter within two weeks. -- by Julie Piotrowski