GOP Jams Democracy
How high did the Republicans’ New Hampshire phone scheme reach?
By Paul Kiel inthesetimes.com
"All McGee needed was the machinery to carry out his scheme. Being a military man, he went up the chain of command, to James Tobin, the regional director for both the Republican National Committee (RNC) and Republican National Senatorial Committee. McGee reported what he needed; Tobin, without a word of caution, gave him the number of Allen Raymond, who ran GOP Marketplace, a political consulting firm. McGee dialed up Raymond, and they struck a deal. For $15,600, Raymond would arrange for repeated hang-up calls throughout Election Day to six numbers: five New Hampshire Democratic Party offices and a Manchester, N.H., firefighters union that was offering voters rides to the polls. The NHRSC footed the bill. Raymond in turn contracted the job out to an Idaho firm called Mylo Enterprises for $2,500.
Although it might have been construed as a dirty trick, McGee believed the jamming was an acceptable battle tactic, like a borderline defamatory attack ad. This was not a covert operation. It had been authorized. He’d spoken to Tobin, and he spoke about the scheme with NHRSC Chairman John Dowd on the eve of the election. On Election Day morning, everything was going according to plan.
It went downhill from there. Early that morning, Dowd consulted the NHRSC’s legal counsel and was told that the jamming was illegal. He called McGee, who in turn called Raymond’s partner to call it off. But Mylo’s machines had been at it since 7:45 a.m. By the time they stopped, at 9:10 a.m., they’d jammed the six numbers for 85 minutes.
The ensuing Justice Department investigation has netted all four of the players at the heart of the conspiracy. McGee and Raymond pled guilty—McGee has already served his seven months in prison, and Raymond is currently serving his three-month sentence—and Tobin and Shaun Hansen, founder of Mylo Enterprises, were indicted. Tobin was convicted last December, mostly on the testimony of McGee and Raymond, and immediately mounted a vigorous appeal. Hansen will stand trial in October."
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Monday, May 29, 2006
IDAHO TELEMARKETING FIRM OFFICIAL INDICTED IN NEW HAMPSHIRE PHONE JAMMING CASE
TELEMARKETING FIRM OFFICIAL INDICTED IN NEW HAMPSHIRE PHONE JAMMING CASE
FBI Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CRM
MONDAY, MARCH 27, 2006
(202) 514-2008
WWW.USDOJ.GOV TDD
(202) 514-1888
"TELEMARKETING FIRM OFFICIAL INDICTED IN NEW HAMPSHIRE PHONE JAMMING CASE
WASHINGTON, DC - Shaun Hansen, former co-owner of Idaho-based telemarketing firm Mylo Enterprises, appeared in a federal court in New Hampshire today to face charges for conspiring to commit, and aiding and abetting the commission of, interstate telephone harassment relating to a scheme to jam several New Hampshire telephone lines on Election Day, 2002, the Department of Justice announced today.
The two-count indictment was returned under seal on March 8, 2006, and unsealed today upon his appearance in court. Hansen, 34, is charged with conspiracy to commit telephone harassment and aiding and abetting telephone harassment.
The indictment alleges that Hansen was contacted by others involved in the scheme and asked to assist in making harassing phone calls to five telephone numbers associated with the New Hampshire Democratic Party and one number associated with the Manchester Professional Firefighters Association on Election Day, November 5, 2002. Hansen allegedly agreed that, in return for $2,500, employees of Mylo Enterprises would place repeated hang-up calls to those numbers on that day. The indictment charges that, at Hansen's direction, employees of Mylo Enterprises in Idaho placed several hundred hang-up calls to those New Hampshire telephone numbers on that morning before the scheme was discontinued.
If convicted, Hansen faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge, and a maximum penalty of two years in prison on telephone harassment charge.
Hansen is the fourth individual charged in the Justice Department's investigation into the phone jamming scheme. Allen Raymond, former president of a Virginia communications consulting company, and Charles McGee, former Executive Director of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee, have each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit telephone harassment. McGee was sentenced to seven months in prison and Raymond was sentenced to three months. James Tobin, former New England Regional Chairman of the Republican National Committee, was convicted after a December 2005 jury trial on for conspiring to commit, and aiding and abetting the commission of, interstate telephone harassment. Tobin will be sentenced on May 17, 2006.
The prosecutions have been led by Andrew Levchuk, Senior Counsel, and Lily Chinn, trial attorney, with the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, and by Nicholas Marsh, trial attorney with the Public Integrity Section of the Department's Criminal Division. The investigation was conducted by Bedford Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Hampshire state Attorney General's Office.
Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty"
FBI Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CRM
MONDAY, MARCH 27, 2006
(202) 514-2008
WWW.USDOJ.GOV TDD
(202) 514-1888
"TELEMARKETING FIRM OFFICIAL INDICTED IN NEW HAMPSHIRE PHONE JAMMING CASE
WASHINGTON, DC - Shaun Hansen, former co-owner of Idaho-based telemarketing firm Mylo Enterprises, appeared in a federal court in New Hampshire today to face charges for conspiring to commit, and aiding and abetting the commission of, interstate telephone harassment relating to a scheme to jam several New Hampshire telephone lines on Election Day, 2002, the Department of Justice announced today.
The two-count indictment was returned under seal on March 8, 2006, and unsealed today upon his appearance in court. Hansen, 34, is charged with conspiracy to commit telephone harassment and aiding and abetting telephone harassment.
The indictment alleges that Hansen was contacted by others involved in the scheme and asked to assist in making harassing phone calls to five telephone numbers associated with the New Hampshire Democratic Party and one number associated with the Manchester Professional Firefighters Association on Election Day, November 5, 2002. Hansen allegedly agreed that, in return for $2,500, employees of Mylo Enterprises would place repeated hang-up calls to those numbers on that day. The indictment charges that, at Hansen's direction, employees of Mylo Enterprises in Idaho placed several hundred hang-up calls to those New Hampshire telephone numbers on that morning before the scheme was discontinued.
If convicted, Hansen faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge, and a maximum penalty of two years in prison on telephone harassment charge.
Hansen is the fourth individual charged in the Justice Department's investigation into the phone jamming scheme. Allen Raymond, former president of a Virginia communications consulting company, and Charles McGee, former Executive Director of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee, have each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit telephone harassment. McGee was sentenced to seven months in prison and Raymond was sentenced to three months. James Tobin, former New England Regional Chairman of the Republican National Committee, was convicted after a December 2005 jury trial on for conspiring to commit, and aiding and abetting the commission of, interstate telephone harassment. Tobin will be sentenced on May 17, 2006.
The prosecutions have been led by Andrew Levchuk, Senior Counsel, and Lily Chinn, trial attorney, with the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, and by Nicholas Marsh, trial attorney with the Public Integrity Section of the Department's Criminal Division. The investigation was conducted by Bedford Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Hampshire state Attorney General's Office.
Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty"
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