[South Florida DX Association] ARLB017 Radio jammer Jack Gerritsen gets seven years, fines

[Bill Marx]

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB017
> ARLB017 Radio jammer Jack Gerritsen gets seven years, fines
> 
> ZCZC AG17
> QST de W1AW  
> ARRL Bulletin 17  ARLB017
> From ARRL Headquarters  
> Newington CT  September 19, 2006
> To all radio amateurs 
> 
> SB QST ARL ARLB017
> ARLB017 Radio jammer Jack Gerritsen gets seven years, fines
> 
> It was a day a lot of radio amateurs in Southern California had been
> anticipating for a long time. On September 18, US District Court
> Judge R. Gary Klausner sentenced convicted radio jammed Jack
> Gerritsen, now 70, to seven years imprisonment and imposed $15,225
> in fines on six counts -- one a felony -- that included transmitting
> without a license and willful and malicious interference with radio
> transmissions. Before sentencing, Gerritsen apologized to the
> federal government, the FCC and the local Amateur Radio community,
> which had endured the brunt of Gerritsen's on-air tirades and
> outright jamming. "I'm sorry, and I apologize to everyone here,"
> Gerritsen told those in the courtroom.
> 
> Gerritsen's contrition did nothing to convince Klausner toward
> leniency. The judge berated Gerritsen as a repeat offender and said
> he believed Gerritsen would continue to commit similar offenses. The
> sentence even exceeded US District Attorney Lamar Baker's
> recommended 46 months incarceration.
> 
> In addition to the prison time, Klausner fined Gerritsen $225,
> payable immediately, and an additional $15,000 to be paid through
> the Probation Department. Klausner tacked on two years' supervised
> probation and recommended Gerritsen remain in custody in Southern
> California during that period.
> 
> Klauser further ordered Gerritsen to participate in a substance
> abuse program at his own expense. He told Gerritsen he could not use
> any identification, including his previous Amateur Radio call sign
> KG6IRO, other than his real name when identifying himself, and he
> told Gerritsen he could not own, possess or use any radio
> transmitting equipment.
> 
> The FCC had been investigating complaints of illegal radio
> transmissions linked to Gerritsen for four years. According to court
> documents, the FCC investigation revealed that Gerritsen transmitted
> both prerecorded messages and real-time harassment and profanity for
> hours at a time, often targeting local Amateur Radio repeater
> systems and precluding their use by licensed operators.
> 
> Following trial last December, Gerritsen was found guilty of causing
> malicious interference with a communications system operated by the
> United States -- a felony. The court also found him guilty of two
> misdemeanor counts of willful or malicious interference with radio
> communications and three misdemeanor counts of transmitting radio
> signals without a license. Gerritsen has been in custody since his
> conviction.
> 
> The FCC has already levied $52,000 in fines on Gerritsen for
> violating its rules and the Communications Act.  
> NNNN 
> /EX
> 
>