Jury Talks Begin in N.H. Phone-Jamming Case

Jury Talks Begin in N.H. Phone-Jamming Case

Tuesday December 13, 2005 12:46 AM


CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - A jury on Monday began deliberations in the case of a former national Republican Party official accused of orchestrating an election day phone-jamming plot against New Hampshire Democrats.

Earlier in the day, lawyers concluded their arguments in the case of James Tobin, President Bush's former New England campaign chairman. Deliberations were to continue Tuesday.

Tobin, 45, is charged with one count of interfering with voters rights and several counts of telephone harassment. If convicted, he faces a maximum 17-year prison sentence and a $750,000 fine.

For nearly two hours on Election Day 2002, hundreds of hang-up calls overwhelmed Democratic get-out-the-vote phone banks and a ride-to-the-polls line run by Manchester's firefighters union.
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5475447,00.html

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James Tobin, of Bangor, Maine, arrives at U.S. District Court in Concord, N.H., Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2005. Tobin, President Bush's former New England campaign chairman, is on trial on charges he orchestrated an Election Day phone-jamming plot in 2002. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Tobin case now with jury
By Beverley Wang, Associated Press Writer | December 12, 2005

CONCORD, N.H. --The fate of a former national Republican Party official accused of orchestrating a phone jamming plot against Democrats is in the hands of a jury.

Lawyers on Monday concluded their arguments in the case of James Tobin, President Bush's former New England campaign chairman. Deliberations continue Tuesday.

Tobin, 45, of Bangor Maine, is charged with one count of interfering with voters rights, conspiring to commit telephone harassment and aiding and abetting in telephone harassment. If convicted, he faces a maximum 17 year prison sentence and $750,000 fine.

Hundreds of hang-up calls overwhelmed Democratic get-out-the-vote phone banks and a ride-to-the-polls line run by Manchester's firefighters union for nearly two hours on Election Day, 2002.

Prosecutors say the plot was hatched by Chuck McGee, former executive director of the New Hampshire State Republican Committee, but would not have gotten anywhere without Tobin, who put McGee in touch with Allen Raymond, an Alexandria, Va.- based telemarketing broker. Tobin's referral revived McGee's plan when it was all but dead, and functioned as a de-facto blessing of the plot, prosecutors said.
(snip/...)http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2005/12/12/tobin_case_now_with_jury/

spend some time in jail for this (I think less than 17 years might be enough to make the point, but he should DEFinitely cool his heels long enough to "get it".)

the elections in the south, in Louisiana big time, I believe it was Nevada where they went around saying they were 'registering voters' and they threw the dems paperwork away, Ohio was one big mess. And each time there was a republican or republican organization at the bottom of things. I hope the guy gets a damn long time. What he did violates every principal of democracy that this country is supposed to stand for.