Judge Delays Fraud Trial of Ex-McKesson Exec

A federal judge in San Francisco has indefinitely delayed the securities fraud trial of a former McKesson Corp. executive, providing more time to resolve a dispute over whether some of the pivotal evidence in the case should be shielded from public scrutiny.

Opening statements in the criminal trial of Richard Hawkins, McKesson’s former chief financial officer, had been scheduled to begin Monday, but Judge Martin Jenkins postponed the arguments so that he could rule on a request to close the courtroom during parts of the trial.

McKesson, a health services industry giant with annual sales of $69.5 billion, wants Jenkins to lock out the public whenever the trial delves into an internal investigation of alleged accounting abuses that saddled shareholders with massive losses.