Attack Hoaxer Gets Counseling

A former John McCain campaign volunteer will undergo counseling and enter a diversion program for first-time offenders for fabricating a story that an armed Barack Obama supporter robbed her and scratched a backward "B" onto her cheek.
Ashley Todd, 20, of College Station, Texas, has confessed to police that she marred her own face, and was released from jail Thursday after waiving her right to a preliminary hearing in Pittsburgh Municipal Court.
As a condition of her release, she must attend counseling sessions and is expected to enter the first-time offenders program that could leave her with a clean record if she successfully completes it. The probation typically runs a year and usually involves community service.
Todd is charged with filing a false police report, which carries a maximum two-year jail sentence and $5,000 fine. She appeared in court wearing a red jumpsuit. The "B" on her right cheek has faded to a light red scratch. There was no testimony at the hearing, conducted at the judge's bench.
Todd had been jailed since Friday, when police said she admitted to making up the story that generated national publicity and was read by Internet users worldwide. Her photo showing the cut on her cheek and a black eye was posted online.
A psychiatrist with the county's behavioral clinic examined Todd while she was jailed and concluded she was competent to stand trial, but needed counseling. Todd must provide the court with paperwork every two weeks documenting that she is receiving psychiatric treatment.
Todd, who is Caucasian, initially told police a 6-foot-4, knife-wielding African American man robbed her Oct. 22 at a Bloomfield ATM on Liberty Avenue before beating, fondling and cutting her because he was enraged by her McCain bumper sticker.