The convictions after the defendants' deaths persist, the U.S. confirmed to the court.

The head of PixarBio Corp, former CEO Frank Reynolds, stands before a federal court in Boston, Massachusetts, US.

The U.S. Justice Department is pushing for a federal appeals court panel in Boston to rule that a defendant's conviction is not overturned after his death and is not invalidated even if he dies before his appeal is heard.

The case involves the conviction of a former executive of a biotech company on securities charges. Prosecutors presenting that argument before the trial panel acknowledged that under their precedents, every other federal appeals panel would overturn the conviction of Frank Reynolds, the former CEO of PixarBio Corp who died in 2022. But Assistant State's Attorney Mark Quinlivan told the judges that the practice of overturning convictions has no constitutional justification and is contrary to laws, such as the Victims' Rights Act, designed to protect victims and hold perpetrators accountable.

"It's an insult to crime victims and their loved ones because it tells them that they are only important to themselves and that they don't matter in the eyes of the law," Quinlivan said.

Reporters reported that Reynolds was found guilty of fraudulently misleading investors into believing he was a successful inventor with the development of a drug to beat drug addiction.

Reynolds was convicted in 2020 and sentenced to seven years in prison and ordered to pay $280,000 in forfeiture and about $7.5 million in restitution to his victims. When he died during the appeal, prosecutors asked the trial panel not to overturn his conviction. All of the remaining 11 regional appellate courts have adopted the legal doctrine of "abatement ab initio" (abatement ab initio) under the general law, under which a court's convictions are voided if the defendant dies before the end of the appeal process. Prosecutor William Cayatta said prosecutors need a "very compelling case" to change an entrenched system that is being consolidated into a uniform practice across the country.