Judge to allow limited swap of evidence in Qwest cases
A judge agreed Wednesday to allow a limited evidence exchange in a fraud case against former Qwest executives, seeking to advance the Securities and Exchange Commission’s civil lawsuit while protecting the rights of ex-Qwest chief Joe Nacchio, who also is facing criminal charges.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Craig Shaffer said he wanted the process to get underway because the lawsuit was filed nearly a year ago based on events that occurred largely in 2000 and 2001. He said he was fearful witness memories will fade even more.
Shaffer and attorneys in the case are trying to resolve conflicting issues between the civil lawsuit and a criminal case that accuses Nacchio of 42 counts of illegal insider trading tied to his sale of $101 million in stock. Nacchio has pleaded not guilty. Both cases revolve around an accounting scandal that forced Qwest Communications International Inc. to restate billions of dollars in revenue. Much of the evidence in the cases overlaps, including witness testimony and millions of pages of documents. Because of those complications, Shaffer said the civil lawsuit probably will not go to trial until next year.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.
Steel deal has O’Neal buying Timberline
Birmingham, Ala.-based O’Neal Steel Inc. has acquired the stock of Timberline Steel from the McCallin family of Commerce City for an undisclosed amount. The transaction marks O’Neal’s fifth acquisition since 1997.
Timberline Steel, which will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of O’Neal, has facilities in Commerce City, Grand Junction, Pueblo and Farmington, N.M. Dan McCallin will continue as president and chief executive.
COLORADO SPRING
Hotel buy will change Wyndham to Marriott
The Procaccianti Group announced Wednesday it has acquired the Wyndham Colorado Springs hotel from Annapolis, Md.-based Thayer Lodging for an undisclosed amount.
Cranston, R.I.-based Procaccianti said it plans to invest roughly $11 million in upgrades at the 311-room hotel and convert it to a full-service Marriott brand over the next 12 months.
DENVER
Pete Coors to tap his wisdom at CSU event
Pete Coors, chairman of Coors Brewing Co., will give the capstone lecture at Business Day at Colorado State University on Wednesday.
Business Day, an event that gives students the opportunity to learn from influential businesspeople, will feature talks by 14 other prominent business leaders and a luncheon. For information, call 970-491-5325.
DOUGLAS COUNTY
CH2M Hill subsidiary lauded for Flats work
Douglas County-based CH2M Hill subsidiary ICF Kaiser is a finalist in the American Council of Engineering Companies’ annual Engineering Excellence Awards competition for work closing the former Rocky Flats nuclear-weapons facility.
Cleanup of the Superfund site that the Department of Energy estimated would take 70 years was accomplished in five years and under budget.
PLANO, Texas
Holding company
of Level 3 cancels IPO
Technology Spectrum, a holding company of Broomfield- based Level 3, withdrew a planned initial public stock offering, Reuters reported Wednesday.
The Plano, Texas-based company oversees Software Spectrum, a software company. It originally filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission last May to raise as much as $115 million in common stock.
DENVER
Qwest inks deal with Wyo. school network
Qwest announced Wednesday that it has signed a new six-year, $24.7 million agreement with the State of Wyoming Department of Education to be the primary provider of network services for the Wyoming Equality Network.
Qwest originally worked with the state to build the network in 1998 that connects more than 400 public schools in the state.
INDIANAPOLIS
Guidant defends defibrillator changes
A Guidant Corp. executive acknowledged that the medical-device maker made changes to one of its defibrillators in 2002 and incorrectly told federal regulators the changes had no effect on the product’s performance.
Still, Fred McCoy, head of Guidant’s cardiac-rhythm management division, said in a deposition released this week he didn’t think the faulty defibrillator was responsible for patients’ deaths.
OMAHA
Railroad: All aboard for fuel conservation
Union Pacific Railroad has unveiled a systemwide program that will reward locomotive engineers who conserve the most diesel fuel.
The Fuel Master’s Program compares engineers’ fuel-consumption performance against fellow engineers in the same territory.
A two-month snapshot of each engineer’s fuel consumption is used to calculate individual average consumption rates.
SAN JOSE, Calif.
HP planning kiosks for digital-photo buffs
Hewlett-Packard Co., looking to expand further into digital photography, plans to supply retailers with kiosks and consoles where consumers can instantly print pictures and create books and calendars with their favorite photos.
The HP Photosmart Studio and HP Photosmart Express systems are the company’s latest drive to capture more of the digital-imaging market.
WASHINGTON
Report due today
on Fannie Mae errors
Fannie Mae, the biggest provider of mortgage financing, will release a report today on $10.8 billion in accounting errors. The report is by Warren Rudman, the former U.S. senator hired by the company to investigate the mistakes.
Rudman, now at the law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in Washington, has delivered the report to Fannie Mae directors and briefed federal regulators, the company said.
KANSAS CITY, Mo.
Feds want more time to mull Block bank
Federal regulators have told H&R Block Inc. they need another month to review the company’s request to start a bank.
The Office of Thrift Supervision was supposed to decide on the Kansas City-based company’s application by last Friday. Instead, the agency said it would extend the deadline for 30 days to further consider the matter, company spokeswoman Linda McDougall said Wednesday.
