Stewart case lawyer takes extra time

NEW YORK, March 2 (UPI) -- A lawyer for Martha Stewart's co-defendant, Peter Bacanovic, Tuesday asked the New York federal judge in the case to give him more time for closing argument.

Richard Strassberg, had been allowed 45 minutes for his final argument but took nearly 90, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

"Please, Mr. Strassberg, you cannot torture the jury," U.S. District Judge Miriam Cedarbaum said. "But I'm not going to nickel and dime you for time."

The day's proceedings started with a brief legal wrangle over new wording that had been introduced into the indictment by the prosecution. At Strassberg's request, Judge Cedarbaum removed the wording.

The argument followed a day in which Stewart was accused of conspiring with her former stockbroker, Bacanovic, to lie about how she had come to sell nearly 4,000 shares in ImClone Systems.