Court Tosses Minor Convictions Against Celebrity Detective Anthony Pellicano

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A federal appeals court has thrown out some of the less serious convictions against a former private eye who illegally tapped phones for celebrity clients.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld racketeering convictions against Anthony Pellicano and some of his co-conspirators.

The court reversed convictions related to computer fraud and tossed out the case against a businessman who hired Pellicano to spy on a rival.

The 71-year-old Pellicano is serving 15 years in prison for illegally wiretapping phones to dig up dirt for well-heeled clients that included the chairman of Paramount Pictures, billionaire casino owner Kirk Kerkorian and comedian Chris Rock.

The court upheld convictions against Kerkorian's lawyer and the brunt of charges against Pellicano, who also was a Los Angeles police officer and a phone company employee.

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