Patricia Dunn finally relieved

Patricia C. Dunn, former chairwoman of Hewlett-Packard Co. had the charges against her in relation to the corporate spying scandal, dismissed by a California judge on Wednesday.

The other three defendants--former HP attorney Kevin Hunsaker; private detective Ronald DeLia; and Matthew DePante of data-brokering company Action Research Group sought to plead no contest to a state misdemeanor count of fraudulent wire communications at Santa Clara County Superior Court in San Jose, Calif., the state attorney general's office said in a statement.

Investigators had been posing as reporters and board members to obtain phone records. The state attorney general alleged Dunn, 53, intended for the conspiracy to get rid of board members who were disclosing information to the media.

The court said it will dismiss the case against the trio on a condition, according to which the three will be required to complete 96 hours of community service by September 12.

Dunn entered no plea. “I am pleased that this matter has been resolved fairly,” Dunn said in a statement. “I have always had faith that the truth would win out.”

The former HP chairwoman had advanced in an ovarian cancer and the Prosecutors said Santa Clara Superior Court Judge Roy Cunningham considered her condition while dismissing the charges.

The state attorney general's office had released a statement earlier on Wednesday, stating that Dunn would plead guilty to a misdemeanor count of fraudulent wire communications, only to call it a prediction mistake in a subsequent statement, released later.

"At court today, Patricia Dunn did not enter any plea in response to the misdemeanor count, and the court exercised its discretion by dismissing the case against her," the statement said.

In the wake of this scandal, the Silicon Valley technology company has lost several executives and board members.

"As to Pattie Dunn, this matter is done," said her lawyer James Brosnahan. "She doesn't face anything else. This is the end of the difficult time she has been put through. And that's a good thing."