Spammers convicted

Thursday, Nov. 4, 2004 | 9:21 a.m.

A Virginia jury's conviction Wednesday of a brother and sister in the nation's first felony prosecution of spammers is a landmark victory in the war against unwanted junk e-mail, industry experts said.

Jeremy Jaynes, considered one of the nation's biggest spammers, and Jessica DeGroot were found guilty of masking their return Internet addresses last summer to send bulk e-mail peddling software and stock picks to customers of America Online and other Internet service providers.

The 12-member jury recommended Jaynes, 30, be sentenced to nine years in a Virginia prison, and DeGroot, 28, be fined $7,500. Judge Thomas Horne is expected to sentence them next year.

A third defendant, Richard Rutowski, was acquitted. All three pleaded not guilty.

"This is very significant. Spam may not go away, but if you're caught, you will go to prison," Lisa Hicks-Thomas, Virginia's senior assistant attorney general, said of the verdict.

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