U.S. Attorney Mourns ‘Human Price’ of DBSI Convictions

The conviction of four former DBSI Inc. officials was a victory for the prosecution, although the government attorney acknowledged “the human price” of the case.

Monday afternoon, a federal jury found former DBSI president Douglas Swenson and three others guilty of fraud in their operation of the failed Idaho real-estate firm. The conviction came after a 42-day trial that was upended when one of the prosecutors’ main witnesses, FBI Special Agent Rebekah Morse, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

“Let me be clear, the human price of this case was too high,” U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson said Monday in a statement.

The death of Ms. Morse, 34, in March followed questioning from the court over a juror’s claims that she was texting while on the witness stand. Under oath, Ms. Morse told the court that she was simply turning off her mobile phone; however, after the court ordered her to turn over her phone, phone records showed she had texted her husband while on the stand.

Ms. Olson, an Idaho native who was sworn in as U.S. attorney in 2010, said the government believes Ms. Morse was truthful in her responses to the court, although officials “understand and respect that the court saw this differently.”

Ms. Olson went on to highlight Ms. Morse as an “outstanding agent and person” who was “greatly respected” and will be “greatly missed.”

“In her less than four years as an agent, all stationed in Boise, she played a critical role in almost every significant white collar prosecution, including three successful trials in the last twelve months. She displayed enormous integrity, intelligence, and honesty. She worked harder and better than any young, new agent I have seen in my more than 20 years as a federal prosecutor. Her vast ability was exceeded only by her great humor and joy. She was a tremendously warm and caring human being who held herself to the highest of standards, gave much to all around her and expected and asked for little in return.”

Ms. Olson declined to take any further questions on the case before sentencing, the date for which hasn’t yet been set.

Write to Jacqueline Palank at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @PalankJ.