(Bloomberg) — A U.S. judge has rejected short-seller Andrew Left’s request to delay a criminal case against him over his trading activity, saying it was a “selective prosecution” that targeted his online speech.
The two-page order issued Monday by U.S. District Judge Terry J. Hatter in Los Angeles did not explain the reason for denying the motion. An earlier bid by Left to dismiss the charges on other grounds was rejected by the same judge in July. A trial is scheduled for March 17.
Left, whose stock tips were closely watched by thousands of investors, was charged in July 2024 following a wide-ranging investigation into the short-selling industry. He and his firm, Citron Research, are accused of using false and misleading social media posts about his business plans in more than a dozen companies to drive their stock up or down enough to make a quick profit.
Eric Rosen, Left’s attorney, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
The case has already led to some voluntary changes in the industry, as a number of retailers briefly stepped up their statements about their own business activities. The Left denied the blame. If convicted, he faces up to 25 years in prison.
Prosecutors say Left used his influence with investors to try to compromise the system with his posts about multibillion-dollar companies such as American Airlines Group Inc. and Tesla Inc., as well as smaller companies such as Namaste Technologies Inc.
Left argued in his July filing that the prosecution was improper because he was targeted for “publishing negative opinions that drive the market down,” while other Wall Street forecasters were left alone for “infusing the market with bullish opinions that drove prices up.”
A request by Left to dismiss a parallel civil lawsuit by the US Securities and Exchange Commission was rejected by another judge in April.
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