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couldn't roam the building and therefore lost his job, he told the judge. David Fanning, who like his brother had been charged with assault and battery with a deadly weapon, pleaded no contest to the reduced charge of assault and battery and was sentenced to two years' probation in February 2002.

John Fanning made out much better. The district attorney pushed for the same result his brother received—a no-contest plea and formal probation. But Fanning's lawyer stressed his client's business prowess and his growing family. After noting the existence of related civil lawsuits, the lawyer argued against a no-contest plea. “There are serious and collateral consequences to Mr. Fanning if Mr. Fanning were to admit to sufficient facts or be found guilty of any charges,” he said. Instead, he asked the judge to impose a short pretrial probation, like that Lynch had been ordered to serve. Assuming no further problems, that would mean the charge against John Fanning would eventually be dismissed. With that, the lawyer said, “this matter can be concluded in the criminal courtroom, and Mr. Lynch can have his day in a civil session, if that's his desire.” Over the objections of the prosecutor and Lynch, the Hingham judge agreed. John Fanning received six months of pretrial probation beginning in February 2002.

Six months later, the charge was dropped. But that didn't end the matter. Lynch was pursuing a suit he filed in late 2001 against Fanning, his brother, and Fanning's wife, who owns the $200,000 apartment. (Fanning has countersued for assault, trespass, and defamation.) And the condo complex workers' compensation insurer sued John and David Fanning for reimbursement of Lynch's $6,000 in medical bills and $45,000 in lost wages stemming from the assault. (Fanning countersued the insurer as well, claiming invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress.)

All told, John Fanning's background certainly marks him as unusual for a leader of a firm on the cutting edge of technological innovation. He had the chance to become one only because of the happenstance of his blood tie to Shawn. But there is something deeper at work here as well. In its earliest days, the Internet was designed by nonprofit researchers working in the government and at universities. One of the most important differences between their work and what had gone on before, at such

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