as to prove or disprove the payola rumors. Perkins misinterpreted the partner's refusal to participate in an illegal phone monitoring proposal as a refusal to investigate the payola allegations themselves, and also based his legal justifications for the monitoring on a misinterpretation of Section 605 of the Communications Act of 1934. Richard Eaton was also consulted for approval, but deferred to Perkins based on what was assumed proper legal judgement and interpretation of the Communications Act. John Rees was contracted to help covertly install a microphone in Hawkins' office, and have it connected to a secure "broadcast loop line" sent to Schecter's personal home in Shaker Heights, where it was connected to an amplifier. The monitoring of Hawkins' office itself lasted between October 23 and November 9, 1972, when Eaton ordered the removal of the line after conferring with Perkins' law firm partner. The microphone was later discovered by a telephone company employee doing regular maintenance work at the station, who promptly notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Schecter and Rees pleaded guilty in federal court to the charges of bugging Hawkins' office on December 11, 1973; both were fined $500, placed on one-year probation, and fired from their respective positions. Indictments were then returned against Silverman and Perkins in March 1974, both faced one count of illegally wiretapping and aiding and abetting; the Department of Justice agreed to reduce the charges to a misdemeanor. Both plead nolo contendere to the misdemeanor charges that December; Silverman was fined $1,000, while Perkins was fined $2,000 and faced an investigation by the District of Columbia Bar for possible disbarment, this investigation was dismissed after the bar's disciplinary board could not find evidence of any outright ethical violations. The FCC's Broadcast Bureau recommended in May 1974 tying the wiretapping investigations into an enlarged review of WJMO and WLYT's license renewal hearings; this came as WFAB had their license renewal denied and the licenses for both WMET-TV and WFAN-TV were revoked. The commission's review board accepted this request in August 1974. Meanwhile, the license renewal hearings were delayed until the end of 1975, after a Freedom of Information Act request by United/Friendly into the FBI's report of their investigation could be resolved. Ultimately, the FCC could not find Eaton had any advance knowledge of the wiretapping, nor was there any direct culpability by United/Friendly outside of the misinterpretation of the Communications Act by