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Old August 26th 04, 05:32 PM
Splinter
 
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On Thu, 26 Aug 2004 10:19:43 -0400, Minnie Bannister
wrote:

The FCC has been known to yank amateur radio licenses on the grounds of
the "bad character" of the holder, as evidenced by (if I remember
correctly the one case I read) a conviction of a crime.

Alan NV8A


Well, the case you're thinking about wasn't a petty theft, it
was murder and, yes, the FCC can and will yank a license for character
issues, basing their "logic" on "Well, if he's willing to commit a
crime, he won't be willing to comply with the FCC Rules and be honest
about it."
Unfortunately, unless Congress steps in and says that certain
misdemeanors shouldn't be counted against a person's character, the
FCC will be yanking licenses for that reason. And, Congress will not
be willing to listen, fearing a voter backlash for being soft on
crime, even petty crimes that would get a person 30 days in jail.
A friend of mine told me that a long term member of RACES was
forced to leave after a minor crime (no jail, just a fine), but, it
was a high enough crime that DHS said, "Dump him or else."
It's not impossible to regain the ticket, though, fortunately.
I recently read where a guy whose character was enough to yank the
ticket proved to an ALJ that he had learned his lesson and was
rehabbed. The ALJ, as mentioned, agreed that was the case and the
Commission affirmed the ALJ's decision and returned the guy's ticket.

Splinter