So, after having been tried and convicted once in 2007, and having that conviction subsequently overturned because of prosecutorial misconduct, former Brocade Communications CEO executive Greg Reyes was convicted again last week on nine counts of securities fraud and making false statements in connection with his involvement in backdating stock options.

Alas, the criminalization-of-business lottery continues in regard to another business practice that simply should not be a crime. Frankly, Reyesí real crime appears to be that he is not Steve Jobs.

Unfortunately, the publicity surrounding this recent disclosure ñ which took place during Reyesí trial ñ probably didnít help Reyes much.

It probably wonít help Robert Furst, either, who is the next unlucky executive who will be put on the merry-go-round of an utterly baseless and random prosecution.

Meanwhile, the different trajectories of these two lives really makes one wonder about the purpose of all this?

Back in 2006, Larry Ribstein was the first blogger to challenge the backdating prosecutions. The utter vacuity of those prosecutions proved that his skepticism was correct. I cannot improve upon Professor Ribsteinís characterization of the true scandal relating to the backdating of stock options:

ìThe real backdating scandal is not the one that has been generally reported. It is, instead, the woeful inadequacy of mainstream business reporting compounded by prosecutorial misconduct.î

A truly civil society would find a better way.