AIDS Blackmail Attempt Draws 1 Year in Jail
A former Harvard University student who tried to blackmail an AIDS-infected doctor was sentenced in Los Angeles Thursday to a year in jail and three years of probation, but has already served most of his time.
John Michael Fountain, 21, pleaded guilty to attempted extortion in October. Court Commissioner Barry Taylor gave him credit for 223 days he has served.
The Hollywood student was working part time for an accounting firm last summer when he found that several of the firm’s clients had tested positive for the AIDS virus. In August, Fountain mailed a threatening letter to a physician that included a newspaper article about legislation that proposed jailing doctors who failed to inform their patients that they were AIDS-infected.
A second letter demanded that $10,000 in cash be delivered to a West Hollywood garage. The physician notified sheriff’s deputies, who staked out the drop site and arrested Fountain.
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