First Ever Felony Conviction For Spam Upheld

Jeremy Jaynes, a Raleigh, NC resident, is making history, though not in a good way.  Mr. Jaynes will spend  nine years in prison for the sending of millions of messages deemed to be spam in 2003. On Friday, the Virginia Supreme Court upheld the felony conviction of violating three Virginia Computer Crimes Act codes, handed down in 2005.

Prosecutors evidenced 53,000 illegal e-mails, sent in just three days.  However they believe as many as 10 million per day were sent over a three month period, July through August of 2003.

Jaynes defense argued that the Virginia Computer Crimes Act violates First Amendment rights to anonymous speech.  Unfortunately, due to the use of fake email addresses, Jaynes broke the CAN SPAM law’s provision of providing contact mechanisms for recipients.

The narrow 4-3 verdict from the Supreme Court was highlighted by the written dissent of Justice Elizabeth Lacy.  In her dissent she argued that the unsolicited bulk electronic mail provision of the Virginia Computer Crimes Act is “unconstitutionally overbroad on its face because it prohibits the anonymous transmission of all unsolicited bulk e-mail including those containing political, religious or other speech protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.”

Regardless, the original sentence has been upheld, three years in prison for each of three violations, nine years in the slammer.  Next to the guy who murdered someone, raped several women, and molested children.  (Well, I can’t really verify that, just painting a picture.)

Sort of makes you never want to send another freakin email… Much less spam.