Judge refuses sex harassment injunction

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 20 (UPI) -- A judge in Massachusetts has refused to grant a civil rights injunction that would have barred a state senator from sexually harassing any woman in the state.

State Sen. James Marzilli, a Democrat, has been charged with harassing four women in Lowell, a town north of his district in Arlington, Mass.

Wendy Murphy, a lawyer who represents three of the four alleged victims, asked for the unusual injunction, the Boston Globe reported Wednesday. If Marzilli was found guilty of violations of civil rights, he would face up to 10 years in prison.

Judge Sandra Ham turned down Murphy's request for a preliminary injunction on Friday.