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By Emily Tjelmeland
Rappahannock News Staff Writer
The Loudoun County Courthouse was the sight of the first convictions under Virginia’s new anti-spam law.
Will more cases follow?
That’s a fine question, according to law enforcement officials. And the answer is a definite “ah, maybe.”
“Given that AOL is headquartered there, it’s likely you’ll see more of these cases end up in Loudoun’s circuit court,” said Tim Murtaugh, spokesman for Attorney General Jerry Kilgore (R). “It’s the epicenter for Internet traffic.”
But don’t expect great numbers. Another Kilgore spokesman, Tucker Martin, said prosecutors won’t be pursuing a large number of spammers because the resources and time involved far exceed that of other felony investigations.
“These are lengthy investigations requiring a lot of legwork before coming to the courts,” Martin said.
' Circuit Court Clerk Gary Clemens said Loudoun’s circuit court is ill-equipped to deal with additional spam cpses, saying more resources would be needed if he felt the new caseload was significant. „
“We do know that with the growth in the clerk’s office - not even considering the spam cases - that there is a tremendous amount of work- already for my staff,” he said. “The addition of spam cases will only add to the challenges and growth issues we already face.”
Even before all of that, there’s a matter that must be settled: Were the first convictions legal?
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