UPDATE 3: Jury sits in Tesla shareholder case regarding Musk’s 2018 tweets
(Recasts the first sentence, selects a jury and adds details about Wednesday’s trial.
Jody Godoy
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters), Jan 17 – A jury made up of nine San Francisco residents was selected Tuesday to hear a case brought in by shareholders of Tesla Inc over CEO Elon Musk’s 2018 tweets claiming he had secured funding for the privatization.
As U.S. district court Judge Edward Chen tried not to select an impartial jury to decide whether Musk’s assertion that funding was “secured” was fraudulent and cost investors “billions,” none of the jurors expressed strong opinions about Musk.
Chen focused on a few panelists who responded to questionnaires saying that Musk was “crazy” or “arrogant.”
Musk’s Twitter management, which he assumed in October, was described by one juror as “I think that he’s just a little off his rocker on a personal basis.”
One potential juror, along with others, said that they could put aside their opinions and give impartial judgment if chosen, but they were not selected to be on the jury. Another potential juror, who described Musk as “smart and successful pioneer”, was also not included.
Musk, who rose to prominence as Tesla’s head, has been known for his unpredictable behavior. Musk has done everything from anointing him Tesla’s “technoking”, to naming his child with a symbol that represents his stated dream to colonize Mars, to naming his children after a symbol of Tesla.
In August 2018, investors sued Musk after he posted on Twitter that Musk was thinking of taking Tesla private for $420 per share. He stated, “Funding secured.”
He also tweeted the same day that he said, “Investor support has been confirmed” and added, “The only reason this is not certain it because it’s contingent upon a shareholder vote.”
Chen ruled that these statements were false and reckless. The jury will decide if Musk spoke truthfully and recklessly. It will also decide if Musk acted in good faith and whether or not to award damages.
The defendants, which include seven former Tesla directors, deny wrongdoing.
They stated in court papers they would argue that Musk had good cause to believe that the funding for the deal was secure.
According to court filings the billionaire had met Yasir Al-Rumayyan who is the managing director for Saudi Arabia’s sovereign fund.
According to court documents, Musk could be called into the stand along with Larry Ellison, Oracle Corp cofounder, and James Murdoch (son of Rupert Murdoch, Fox Corp Chairman).
Opening statements are scheduled for Wednesday, and the trial will continue.
(Reporting by Jody Gottoy in San Francisco Additional Reporting by Tom Hals Wilmington, Del. Noeleen Walder & Matthew Lewis edit.