MILWAUKEE, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Four men accused of puncturing tires to sabotage Republican get-out-the-vote efforts in 2004 agreed to plead no contest to misdemeanors.
The defendants include Michael Pratt, 33, son of former Milwaukee Acting Mayor Marvin Pratt, and Sowande Omokunde, the 26-year-old son of U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis. They entered their plea on the second day of jury deliberations, following eight days of testimony.
Pratt and Omokunde were accused -- along with three other former staffers for the Kerry-Edwards campaign -- vandalizing 25 vans rented by state GOP officials to get people to the polls on Election Day 2004. The vans were parked outside Bush for President headquarters.
The defendants faced up to 3 1/2 year prison terms and $10,000 fines if convicted. Prosecutors said they would recommend probation sentences as part of the deal, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
Lewis G. Caldwell, 29, and Lavelle Mohammad, 36, also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges. Justin Howell, 21, was not part of the deal, the newspaper said.
