Judge tosses verdicts against infomercial stock teachers

ALEXANDRIA — A federal judge has tossed out guilty verdicts against two salespeople who used late-night infomercials to tout their stock-trading abilities.

A jury had convicted Utah residents Linda Woolf and David Gengler on fraud charges in May. The two were among the top earners at a company called Teach Me to Trade, which uses infomercials and hotel seminars across the country to hawk courses and software on making money in the stock market.

In a 51-page ruling issued Friday, U.S. District Judge Anthony Trenga set aside the jury’s guilty verdicts and ordered an acquittal. He said prosecutors failed to show the two had been part of any fraud scheme.

A spokesman for the prosecutors’ office says the government is reviewing its options on whether to appeal the ruling.