Lois Lerner Fights Back

Politico ^ | 6/27/2014 | Rachel Bade

[Liz]

Nice take----your computer expertise is much appreciated. As for the legalities, people have gone to jail for "computer tampering" and other electronic mischief.

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Some state laws generally define Computer Tampering thusly: A person who acts without authority or who exceeds authorization of use commits computer tampering by:

1. Accessing, altering, damaging or destroying any computer, computer system or network, or any part of a computer, computer system or network, with the intent to devise or execute any scheme or artifice to defraud or deceive, or to control property or services by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises.

2. Knowingly altering, damaging, deleting or destroying computer programs or data.

3. Knowingly introducing a computer contaminant into any computer, computer system or network.

4. Recklessly disrupting or causing the disruption of computer, computer system or network services or denying or causing the denial of computer or network services to any authorized user of a computer, computer system or network.

5. Recklessly using a computer, computer system or network to engage in a scheme or course of conduct that is directed at another person and that seriously alarms, torments, threatens or terrorizes the person. For the purposes of this paragraph, the conduct must both:

(a) Cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress.

(b) Serve no legitimate purpose.

6. Preventing a computer user from exiting a site, computer system or network-connected location in order to compel the user's computer to continue communicating with, connecting to or displaying the content of the service, site or system.

7. Knowingly obtaining any information that is required by law to be kept confidential or any records that are not public records by accessing any computer, computer system or network that is operated by this state, a political subdivision of this state, a health care provider as defined in section 12-2291, a clinical laboratory as defined in section 36-451 or a person or entity that provides services on behalf of a health care provider or a clinical laboratory.

8. Knowingly accessing any computer, computer system or network or any computer software, program or data that is contained in a computer, computer system or network.

[Liz]

Lerner's got a lot to answer for.

Her "cover story" WRT the Grassley invite is a bit amateurish: supposedly the invitations were placed in the wrong envelopes---and that Lerner "accidentally" received Grassley's invite. So that would mean Grassley got Lerner's invite. Right?

UT-OH Grassley put out a statement that he does not have Lerner's invite.

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As FReeper Fair Paul insightfully posted: How would Lerner receive an invitation that was meant to go to Senator Grassley? Is she intercepting his mail/email?

Lerner "accidentally" receiving....and opening ....US mail addressed to Sen Grassley is a federal offense----in legal terms: tampering with US mail. Mail tampering refers to the willful theft, destruction or opening of the mail of another person without their consent.

The moral equivalent of the Watergate break-in.

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REFERENCE----mail tampering is a crime punishable by incarceration, fines, or a term of probation. Within these individual United States, tampering with the mail may be a crime under state laws; however, mail fraud is a federal crime. The exact definition will vary by jurisdiction, but "tampering" generally includes opening, destroying, damaging, or interfering with mail intended for another person.

Under most states laws within the United States, mail is considered private property. As such, an individual has an expectation of privacy attached to his or her mail. When another person breaches that expectation of privacy, he or she may be guilty of mail tampering.

State laws differ, but in most cases, no one is allowed to open mail intended for another person. In many cases, even members of the same household cannot open mail addressed to another person in the same house. State statutes do frequently make an exception for United States Postal workers or other carriers if they are acting in good faith when opening the mail as part of their job.

Destroying, damaging, or interfering with the mail are also often considered mail tampering. For instance, removing mail from someone's mailbox or throwing mail away that is intended for another person may amount to a crime. Under most state statutes, tampering with the mail is a misdemeanor and is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to a year or two.