^*Hughes and four others had also been indicated by a federal grand jury in the Air West takeover. Charging that they had manipulated Air West stock and defrauded the airline’s stockholders, a federal grand jury in Las Vegas indicted Hughes, Chester Davis, Robert Maheu, David Charnay, and James Nall on December 27, 1973. United States District Court Judge Bruce R. Thompson dismissed the indictment on January 30, 1974, ruling that the government failed to “state an offense.” Rather than appeal Thompson’s decision, the government secured a second indictment on July 30, 1974. Once again, Thompson tossed it out. In a decision handed down on November 13, 1974, Thompson again contended that the government had failed to state an offense. While observing that the conduct of the Hughes parties was “reprehensible and an abuse of the power of great wealth,” the judge nevertheless ruled it did not constitute criminal misconduct. This time the Justice Department appealed Judge Thompson’s order. For a year and a half the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit carried the case on its docket. Finally, on May 7, 1976—a month after Hughes died—it ruled that Judge Thompson had erred in dismissing the indictment, ordered it reinstated, and returned the case to the district court for trial. When the case was scheduled for trial in April of 1977, the United States attorney’s office requested a delay because one of its chief witnesses, George Crockett, an unindicted co-conspirator, was missing. The United States attorney advised Judge Thompson that a former director of Air West had recently talked to Crockett, who reportedly was on his fishing boat near the state of Sonora, Mexico, and that Crockett told him he intended to stay in Mexico until the indictment was dismissed. Judge Thompson denied the government’s motion for a delay and, for the third and last time, dismissed the indictment.