Former Hudson County Jail Deputy Director Kirk Eady was sentenced to 21 months in prison, as well as three years probation, today after being found guilty on wiretapping charges in March.
Eady, 47, of East Brunswick, was found guilty of wiretapping private conversations between Hudson County jail employees through the Prank Dial website’s now defunct Evil Operator function back in March.
Five weeks later, Eady was denied a motion for acquittal by U.S. District Judge William Walls.
Eady used Evil Operator from March 8 through July 8, 2012 to try and figure out who was feeding information to EDPDLaw.com, a website he felt was dedicated to ruining his reputation.
His attorney, Peter Willis argued during sentencing that probation would be suitable for his client, given that he lost a $120,000 a year job and his pension – also claiming that his feud with Patricia Aiken, the owner and of EDPD Law, was petty and juvenile.
Assistant U.S. Attorney David Foster countered by saying that Eady’s actions were very serious, calling him a “conniving†man who “made grown men cry†as a result of consistently abusing his power in the jail. Judge Jose Linares’ sentence seemed to signify he agreed with Foster’s argument.
Daniel Murray, a witness in the case and the vice president of the Hudson County Jail Policemen’s Benevolent Association (PBA), told Hudson County View he was satisfied with the sentencing, but politics in the jail remain.
Both Willis and Eady declined to comment outside the courthouse.