“He wanted to use the 100-hour punishment to read books about endangered species statutes and lobby Congress to change the law he violated, according to documents filed in the U.S. court,” says a Hearst Newspapers report, published July 31, 2005 in the Washington Examiner. He is Lawrence Small, who runs the Smithsonian Institution. The newspaper report gives the gist of the story in its lead paragraphs:
Smithsonian secretary to do labor for crime
By Eric RosenbergMore than a year and a half after he pleaded guilty to violating a federal endangered species law, Smithsonian Institution Secretary Lawrence Small will finally serve his sentence of 100 hours of community service, his probation officer said Monday.
Matthew Worboys of the U.S. Probation Office here said the Smithsonian chief would be required to do physical labor, duties that Small had been resisting.