An appeals court issued a ruling Friday in the Bernie Ebbers fraud case, and as the headline reads, he’s still guilty. Last year, the former CEO of WorldCom Inc. was found guilty of conspiracy, securities fraud and other charges, and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Ebbers' fraud led to the $11 billion bankruptcy of the telecommunications company — still the largest in U.S. history. A three-judge appeals panel rejected Ebbers' argument that the trial was flawed. They then went on to chastise the former motel manager turned telecom tycoon. "The methods (Ebbers) used were specifically intended to create a false picture of profitability even for professional analysts that, in Ebbers' case, was motivated by his personal financial circumstances," Judge Ralph Winter of the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals wrote for the appeals panel. They also rejected Ebbers' contention that the punishment was too harsh for the crime. "Given Congress' policy decisions on sentences for fraud, the sentence is harsh but not unreasonable," the judge added. The sentence seems pretty reasonable when you consider that a number of blue-haired retirees were forced to become Wal-Mart greeters because of Ebbers' greed. —Matthew Wurtzel
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