Wiretap victims grateful private eye is convicted

"We had our lives broken into," Carradine said. "The feeling of violation is so profound it gives me shivers to think about it today. The depth of which they invaded our privacy is appalling."

Representatives for Sylvester Stallone and Garry Shandling, who prosecutors said also were Pellicano targets, declined to comment on the verdict.

A number of subplots played out during the trial.

Jurors watched as an uncomfortable Chris Rock testified about a model he believed was trying to shake him down. They saw a confounded Shandling study his name on a police records audit and a stoic, one-time superagent Michael Ovitz recount how he had hired Pellicano to find the source of negative news stories about a company he was selling.

But the biggest power brokers with links to Pellicano, such as famed entertainment attorney Bert Fields, Paramount studio head Brad Grey and Ovitz, insisted they didn't know about his methods and weren't charged.

The jury convicted Pellicano of racketeering and racketeering conspiracy, along with wiretapping, wire fraud, identity theft and manufacture or possession of a wiretapping device. He was acquitted of a charge of unauthorized computer access.

The racketeering counts each carry a maximum of 20 years in prison, while most of the other counts have five-year maximum sentences. Sentencing was set for Sept. 24, and U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer ordered Pellicano to remain in custody.

The jury also found four co-defendants guilty of a variety of charges.

Mark Arneson, a former Los Angeles police sergeant, and former telephone company worker Rayford Earl Turner were convicted of racketeering and racketeering conspiracy. Abner Nicherie, a Pellicano client, was convicted of aiding and abetting a wiretap.

Kevin Kachikian, a software designer who created a wiretapping program, was convicted of conspiracy to wiretap and manufacturing or possession of a wiretap device. He was acquitted of nine wiretapping counts.