After four years in prison awaiting trial, Kevin Mitnick has filed a guilty plea to 25 counts of computer-related fraud. The plea agreement should place an upper limit on Mitnick’s sentence, but it also bars him from selling his story and from using computers for three years after his release. The cracker was arrested in February 1995 and charged with copying proprietary software from computer systems belonging to cellphone manufacturers. Because he had two prior convictions for similar crimes, Mitnick was detained without bond and has remained in prison ever since. His supporters have criticized prosecutors for dragging their feet over bringing him to trial. They say it was Mitnick’s own intransigence and his habit of changing attorneys that brought about the long delays.
