The Latest on MIT's Bad Dad

Former MIT professor and business whiz John Donovan Sr. has been found guilty for staging his own shooting in 2005, wasting a hell of a lot of Cambridge's time, and irritating state Attorney General Martha Coakley. Supposedly, his motive for such weird behavior was that he wanted to get revenge on his son by saying his son had hired Russian hit men to kill him.

Donovan went on trial last week for filing a false police report. On Friday, he was convicted, sentenced to two years' probation, and ordered to pay a $625 fine. Even if you are stupid enough to shoot yourself in the stomach on purpose and are pretty clearly nutty, there's little the legal system can do about it.

Besides, it looks as if the family is in need of a Dr. Phil, not a Judge Judy. During the trial, more information came out about his bizarre relationship with his own offspring. James Donovan, the son originally accused of the crime by Donovan Sr., testified that his father called him a "demon" while the family fought over Donovan's fortune. The son also added that Donovan uttered the words, "I will ruin you." Telling the world that your own son had you shot is one way to go about ruining someone.

Donovan earned his money while teaching at the Sloan School, starting a bunch of companies, speaking to companies, and publishing books. While he clearly had it together on a professional level, his personal life was a mess. Beyond the fight over Donovan's money, in 2002, one of Donovan's daughters claimed he abused her sexually when she was a child. Donovan also accused his son of laundering $180 million.

When Donovan got shot in the abdomen, he claimed that two masked men attacked him while he was in his car in a parking lot near MIT's campus. At the time, when the police weren't aware that Donovan was crackers, Cambridge was on high alert.

The case was heard by a judge instead of a jury. Donovan waived his right to a jury trial and decided to put his fate in the hands of Judge Kenneth Fishman - and Fishman obviously wasn't impressed. Perhaps the fact that Donovan had a "to-do list" for self-shooting impacted Fishman's decision.

If you want to hear more about MIT's Bad Dad, Boston Magazine ran an article that details many of Donovan's past exploits. He has accused so many people in this area of plotting against him that they call themselves the "Donovan Alumni Association."

Image of a World's Worst Dad T-Shirt from Palmer Cash. Because framing your son for your own murder is just cold.