Stanford ruled fit for trial

U.S. District Judge David Hittner, who ordered accused swindler R. Allen Stanford into treatment earlier this year after ruling him incompetent for trial, ruled this afternoon that Stanford now is competent, the Houston Chronicle reports. The defense asked for the trial to be delayed until April, and Hittner will rule on that next week. Stanford, 61, is currently scheduled to go to trial Jan. 23 on charges he perpetrated a $7 billion Ponzi scheme. Government and defense lawyers earlier today traded closing arguments on whether Stanford is fit to stand trial. “Stanford wants to con his way out of this case, the same way he conned investors,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg Costa said in his summation. Defense witnesses testified that Stanford cannot aid in his defense because he suffers from mental disorders including memory loss stemming from a head injury in a 2009 jailhouse fight. The government presented testimony suggesting he is faking the amnesia. Stanford spent Wednesday night under psychiatric observation after a physician testifying on his behalf said Stanford was a suicide risk as he awaited a ruling on his competence to stand trial. Stanford was overheard in court this morning complaining about the decision, saying he was unable to sleep while under observation. Read the full story here. In other Stanford related news, U.S.- and Antiguan-appointed receivers for his holdings are vying in another court for control of his assets as investors await payment for losses in his alleged scheme. Read that story from Bloomberg Businessweek here.