A federal grand jury Wednesday indicted a UW-Madison graduate student on two felony counts for allegedly interfering with emergency radio, including broadcasting pornography on it, Halloween weekend and Nov. 11, the Associated Press reported.
Rajib Mitra, 25, could face up to 20 years in prison and $500,000 in fines. The grand jury charged him with two counts of knowingly sending a code, program or command to the city's emergency radio system. They began investigating when audio from pornographic movies came over the radio in short bursts 13 times Nov. 11.
The interference made the emergency radios die for periods of up to 20 minutes, disrupting communication even while police tried to break up violent crowds on State Street during Halloween.
Santa Barbara County authorities issued an arrest warrant for Michael Jackson Wednesday, and CNN reported Jackson would turn himself in Thursday morning.
Jackson faces multiple counts of lewd and lascivious contact with a minor under 14, according to District Attorney Tom Sneddon.
Sneddon added child molestation charges would be filed soon against Jackson. Bail on the warrant is set at $3 million. He did not release details of time or place of the incidents surrounding the charges. Jackson could face up to eight years in prison on each count he is charged with.
Lawyers for three Wisconsin lawmakers facing a combined 23 felony charges argued before the 4th District Court of Appeals Wednesday that state statutes do not clearly ban lawmakers and their employees from campaigning during working hours.
State Sen. Chuck Chvala, D-Madison, Assembly Majority Leader Steven Foti, R-Oconomowoc, and state Rep. Scott Jensen, D-Waukesha, allegedly used state time for campaign purposes. Lawyers for the three lawmakers also argued the statutes do not give proper notice that illegal activities by lawmakers can lead to felony charges.
Unless the court rules the statutes unconstitutional, Chvala, Foti and Jensen will face jury trials.
A federal grand jury indicted recalled state Sen. Gary George, D-Milwaukee, on two counts of conspiracy Wednesday.
George allegedly took illegal kickbacks from a Milwaukee social services agency and a children's athletic club. George is also charged with taking thousands of dollars of cash bribes from businessmen in exchange for state construction contracts and with making his Senate staff serve his personal law firm and his relatives' Virgin Island television station.
If convicted, George faces up to five years in prison and $250,000 for each count.
