At the university, he was reporter and editor for the student newspaper, The Daily Cardinal, and earned a 3.75 grade point index in his freshman year—the only year he was in attendance.

[3] Karleton made a bomb out of dynamite, 100 US gallons (380 L; 83 imp gal) of fuel oil and 1,700 pounds (770 kg) of ammonium nitrate fertilizer.

The bomb was placed in a stolen van left next to Sterling Hall, a building that housed the Army Mathematics Research Center, as well as the university's physics department.

The bomb detonated at 3:42 AM on August 24, 1970, killing Robert Fassnacht, a physics post-doctoral researcher who was working late, injuring three others, and causing millions of dollars in damage to the building.

[4][5] After the arrest, his former University of Wisconsin roommate Rod Beaton formed a fundraising committee to assist with the legal defense for Fine.

On the same day, he also pleaded guilty in Dane County Wisconsin Circuit Court to charges of destruction of property and to murder in the third degree for causing the death of Robert Fassnacht.