Michael Goland, a maverick pro-Israel activist, was convicted May 3 of violating federal election laws to ensure the 1986 re-election of Sen. Alan Cranston (D-Calif.), one of Israel’s staunchest supporters.
Goland was convicted in federal court here on one count of making an illegal political donation, while the jury acquitted him on four other counts of conspiracy and deadlocked on a felony false-statement count.
Sentencing was set for July 16, with Goland facing up to one year in jail and a $360,000 fine.
According to court testimony in the convoluted case, Goland secretly and illegally funneled $120,000 to a fringe right-wing candidate in the 1986 senatorial race in California.
The alleged aim was to siphon enough conservative votes away from the Republican contender, Ed Zschau, to assure the victory of Cranston, a Democrat. As it turned out, the fringe candidate took just enough votes away from Zschau to clinch Cranston’s re-election.
Last year, Goland was tried on the same charges, but the trial ended with a hung jury.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
