Monday, July 02, 2007, 7/02/2007 09:00:00 AM

Final Dismissal in HP Spying Case

A case we've covered extensively -- some might say ad nauseum (and most recently here) -- is over.

From IDG News Service via ComputerWorld, the report that Santa Clara (CA) County Superior Court Judge Ray Cunningham has dismissed charges against the three remaining criminal defendants in the Hewlett-Packard Co. spying case. The three are former HP attorney Kevin Hunsaker and private investigators Ron DeLia and Matthew DePante.

The charges that were dropped against the three involved their part in the use of false pretenses to obtain phone records of individuals they were investigating for leaking HP board deliberations to the news media. Cunningham agreed to the dismissal after each of the defendants performed at least 96 hours of community service.

According to the judge: "At worst, the conduct in this case amounted to boardroom politics and a betrayal of trust rather than criminal activity."
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