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I swear Governor, it wasn't me ...
In what could be seen as a rather strange co-incidence, legislators in the US state of Wisconsin have begun circulating a Bill that would ban prank phone calls.The move comes only weeks after…
Lawyers Weekly
In what could be seen as a rather strange co-incidence, legislators in the US state of Wisconsin have begun circulating a Bill that would ban prank phone calls.
Reuters reports that on 23 February, a caller posing as one of Walker's biggest financial backers tricked him into saying he hoped to lure back 14 Democrats, who have fled Wisconsin, under false pretenses so he could push his budget deficit cutting Bill through the state Senate.
Walker ended up more than a little red-faced as the story broke around the world.
Wisconsin's Badger Herald has since reported that a prank phone call Bill has been introduced to prohibit tricking the call's recipient into believing the caller is someone they are not for malicious purposes.
The Bill also forbids a caller from giving a false phone number or convincing the receiver that it comes from someone other than the real caller, and makes it illegal to defraud, harm or wrongfully obtain information.
The law would be enforced by a district attorney and anyone who dares violate the law would be subject to a fine of between $1,000 and $10,000 for each call made.
Creators of the Bill have flat-out denied any relationship with the Walker incident, and it seems that the Bill has already garnered outside support.
"Transparency and honesty are always better than secrecy and deception. If this Bill will help protect consumers, it deserves a hearing and deserves to be passed," said Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin.
It remains to be seen whether or not Bart Simpson fans, bored teenagers and radio DJs feel the same way.
Folklaw just loves the fact that Wisconsin has a newspaper called the Badger Herald.
