Nation IN BRIEF : LOUISIANA : Duke Acquitted of Election Violations

Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke was cleared of charges that he broke state campaign finance laws by taking anonymous cash donations. State District Judge William Brown said he found some technical violations but did not think Duke or his campaign knowingly or willfully broke the law. Duke testified that he and his staff were overwhelmed when they tried to comply with the laws in his unsuccessful Louisiana gubernatorial bid in 1991. The state ethics board had filed a civil lawsuit accusing Duke and his campaign of using paraphernalia and ticket sales to skirt the cash ban.