Alleged SF computer saboteur bail request denied

Tag : Complete Computer System
A judge on Wednesday refused to reduce the $5million bail of a San Francisco technology expert accused ofrigging the city's computer system to malfunction during routinemaintenance.
Terry Childs has been jailed since July 13 on four felony counts ofcomputer tampering. He is accused of creating secret passwords thatgave him exclusive access to the city's new multi-million-dollarcomputer network, which stores records such as officials' e-mails,city payroll files, confidential law enforcement documents and jailbookings.
Authorities said Childs initially refused to reveal correctpasswords to them, but that he turned them over to Mayor GavinNewsom during an unusual jailhouse visit Tuesday.
The city is still experiencing computer problems, said SanFrancisco Deputy District Attorney Conrad del Rosario. He told SanFrancisco Superior Court Judge Lucy McCabe that the Sheriff'sDepartment is "locked out" and that other city departments arehaving problems.
Defense attorney Erin Crane said her client was the subject of asmear campaign by co-workers jealous of Childs' computer savvy andwork ethic.
In arguing for reduced bail, Crane said in a motion that Childs wasmerely trying to protect the network after "co-workers andsupervisors had in the past maliciously damaged the systemthemselves, hindered his ability to maintain it ... and showncomplete indifference to maintaining it themselves."
Crane also said Childs, 43, posed no danger to the public.
She declined to comment outside court other than to say she wasdisappointed about the bail. She said his incarceration beforetrial will hinder her preparation of a complex case.