Could MURDOCH's Son Face Jail for Hacking Scandal?
by Amy Tennery
Let’s assess the damage here, shall we?Trying to keep track of the News Corp-hacking scandal fallout is particularly difficult, especially considering that criminal charges might be handed down on both coasts now. Yup, prodigal son and News Corp Chairman/CEO James Murdoch is in deep doo.
Just days after shutting down News of the World, word emerged late last night that young Murdoch could face fines and criminal charges in the U.S. (under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act), as well the U.K., according to the Guardian. Ouch.
Does this mean prison time is in the cards for Murdoch? Well, it’s a little too soon to tell. But a legal expert told the Guardian that the hacking scandal qualifies as two counts under the FCPA. And those charges can lead to up to five years behind bars, each. Of course, we don’t know who from News Corp might be charged and when, so let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves here.
Another main issue is that Murdoch now admits he may have led parliament down the primrose path vis-a-vis hacking roughly 4,000 different phone lines. His defense? He says he didn’t “have the complete picture at the time.” But will that kind of defense really fly? Call us skeptics, but… yea, we’re skeptical.
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