If they really looked like bombs, it's pretty scary that they were in ten different cities for up to three weeks and nobody noticed and called.
But looking at the device last night, it didn't look at ALL like a bomb. And all the panic seems to have been caused NOT by anybody who saw the device (except the worker that found it), but by the news reports and shutting down traffic, such that people who did not SEE the devices had visions of dangerous bombs, or pipe bombs, etc..
I'm not ready to excuse the marketing firm (I do hope they didn't put the marketing guys in jail when they arrested them), but I'm also not ready to simply say that if you do something that makes the police overreact, you have to go to jail for it.
The city should have an ordinance against placing advertising on public spaces without a license. If they do, we can prosecute for that violation, and the fine can reflect the cost to the city of the violation, which can include EVERYTHING -- that's just my opinion.
But if there is no law prohibiting such advertising, then I don't think we should fine them or throw people in jail just because someone misunderstood.
However: the guy that found the first one should be rewarded. I don't care that it was a hoax, we need to encourage people to report stuff like this if it looks suspicious. We don't need ordinary citizens to look back at this incident and say "well, this is probably just another hoax, and I don't want to be a laughingstock".
I'd also love to know WHEN TNT,Cartoon channel, or the ad agency first contacted a law enforcement official to tell them the devices were theirs, and whether they instead had a big meeting of lawyers while this was going on. It seems someone could have put this scare to an end pretty quickly with the right call.
I think the panic was caused by WHERE the devices were placed. They weren't in typical advertising type places. They were in the kinds of places a terrorist would have put bombs. This advertising crew deserves every punishment they receive.
They're looking at 190 years if convicted of all 38 counts.
Under state law, you need a permit, and there seem to be lots of restrictions. For $1.05, you can purchase your own copy of 711 CMR 1.00-3.00 Control and Restriction of Billboard Signs and Other Advertising Devices.
I should have added in my previous answer that, in addition to the State Code, the City of Boston has numerous restrictions (size, height, etc.) that seem to vary by neighborhood, and -- frankly -- I got tired of looking.
Did you see it suspended under a bridge? Maybe it looked differently to someone who observed it there. And what does a bomb look like anyway? Is there one specific shape people should be concerned with? Of course not. I'm not familiar with bombs of any kind, so had I seen a strange gadget with wires and batteries, hanging from a bridge, which by the way tend to be targets of terrorists, I probably would have called it in myself.
It looks like a litebrite
But it calls into a bigger question that if we have spent billions and billions on these major cities for homeland security and they cannot tell the difference between a litebite and a bomb, wheres the money really going? One portable bomb sniffing device or a bomb sniffing dog should have enlightened him. Also these were up and inplace for days and they just now notice them?