Thomas Seeks New Lawyer to Appeal the RIAA
Written by Ben Jones on January 01, 2008Things seem to be going from bad to worse, for Minnesota’s Jammie Thomas. After incurring a hefty judgment in the October trial vs the RIAA, she is now having to look for new representation.
Thomas, served with a $222,000 judgment in October 2007 has recently published to her website, freejammie.com, that her existing lawyers, Brian Toder, and associates, will not be working on her appeal.
Some may see that as a mixed blessing. Toder, a maritime law specialist, was hardly the most appropriate choice of counsel, and this showed in a frankly lackluster non-existent defense.
Ms. Thomas explained to TorrentFreak why she initially chose Toder for the case “I had no idea who could represent me for my case and Mr. Toder was listed on another attorney’s weblog, Mr. Ray Beckerman, as being the attorney from Minnesota who handled cases such as mine.” she also said, “I feel Mr. Toder performed as best he could considering the financial situation I am in and how much I could afford to pay him and his firm.”
The notice on the website says that all the donations will still be used for her new defense: “She [Thomas] confirmed that the donations collected here are still going into her legal defense fund and will be used to finance her appeal. She is now in search of a capable attorney ready to take the appeal either pro bono or for what is raised through fundraising efforts.”
Donation details are at freejammie.com
Previously: TorrentFreak’s Most Memorable Quotes of 2007
Next: Top 10 Most Pirated Movies and TV Shows of 2007
88 Responses
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“Some may see that as a mixed blessing. Toder, a maritime law specialist, was hardly the most appropriate choice of counsel”
Ah, but who better to deal with accusations of piracy on the high seas than a maritime lawyer. Ye landlubbers!
Methinks Jammie Thomas is an extremely confused person.
This thread is funny :)
People fighting on why we hate the RIAA…. :)
Why should there be new laws and taxes for a industry thats obviously changing?
How can a industry get police powers and abillity to influence laws and taxes?
“Normal” industries adapt or die, however movie and music industry are defyently fighting against industry revolution.
Just as say employers fought against the unions and justice for workers. They wanted slaves, just like the movie/music industry wants.
They want to trap consumers, create mini monopolies for cash flow and make laws and regulations so they can do it forever.
Im helping to change a industry thats corrupted and sick to something better. Either it dies in the process and a new industry arrise like the normal process or it goes so far that people die for our rights to print a book, like the printing revolution.
Did anyone believe the world never change?
Entertainment production and distribution that got digitalized have moved to the internet or is in process of moving.
In fear we got old laws to apply for internet, we got intellectual property laws, millenium act etc.
All just to keep a industry from dying a natural death.
People who printed books were once hunted, but thanx to their defyence and the peoples will, in the end we got to read the news every morning.
The newspapers adapted, their on the internet now for free (well most).
News no longer costs, why cant music be the same? Why cant creativity be free? Distribution is already as free as it can get thanx to Bittorrent.
I will never think i am doing something wrong, the ones who are doing wrong is the industry and the ones who support the industry.
Content creators do no longer need the industry, should the industry be allowed to force a need?
Believe in propaganda all you want, id say you would be fools. Either fight for your rights or be enslaved, let history teach you.
Do not let them make laws, do not let them get away with things, do not be blind and believe their propaganda.
Do not give up rights of many for benefit of a few.
Yes im wasted :)
Yea I haven’t read any reasons here. It’s all just idealistic prattle. What should or what shouldn’t be without any concrete reasons is just rubbish. It’s retarded you people make a distinction between the RIAA and the music industry, as if the RIAA doesn’t represent and solely exist to enforce the music industries agenda. The music industry as a whole is to blame for this situation. The RIAA isn’t some independent organization that exists to profit for its own self. “They” are the must industry. This hatred towards the RIAA for “stealing” from people and ruining their lives is brainless. The RIAA didn’t steal or ruin anyone’s life, the justice system did. The courts determine and enforce these judgments. Why don’t you put this energy into forming interest groups to lobby congressmen and senators, or fighting the reelection campaigns of judges that judge in favor of anti-p2p legislation? And this concept that industries and corporations exists for the consumer is completely deluded. I don’t know if it’s just ignorance of how the American system functions, or just disgust with it? Every industry in America has politicians in its pocket and laws made in its favor. Also, did you not read that the judgment of 220k was hoped to dissuade others from downloading. Judgments are made to award a monetary sum and to serve as a warning to others. You children need to stop living in the world that should be, and focus on the world that is. America was founded with a strong sense of property rights, not “fair use”. You people should have learned in kindergarten that life isn’t fair.
1. Sharing is NOT stealing! Let me ask you a question Mr. “Malarkey”, have you ever lent a friend a CD with music? I mean original CD that you bought, of course. Have you ever borrowed an original CD with music from a friend? Or did such with a DVD that you bought, or videocasette? See, thats sharing. It’s the same thing, only now it’s done online. Instead of me walking to a friend’s house to ask for the movie/song, I request permission online. He gives permission, resulting in sharing. Which is … something that exists since the beginning of mankind.
2. Again, it’s NOT stealing. It’s not like a movie is plagiarized on the internet. For example, if John Smith releases a song “The Best Damn Song”, it goes on the net. Then the song is downloaded 500,000 times. Do you see the title of the song “The Best Damn Song” with another artist’s name attached? NO. Moreover, John Smith benefits from a larger audience, because he is a new singer. He is planning to have a concert in 6 months, but before he released “The Best Damn Song” he was unknown. Now at least 500,000 people heard about him, and they liked his stuff. So now a lot of people go to his concert. It helps the author to gain both popularity and money. The only party who doesn’t benefit is RIAA/MPAA/CIAD or whatever their names are.
Any questions?
Oh yeah, 1 more thing.
I watch movies in theatres. Take Spider-man 3. I watched it soon after its release on the big screen. I PAID for the movie. And I liked it a lot. So tell me if you please, WHY should I pay another $30-$50 in order to get it on a DVD now? What’s wrong in downloading something I already paid for?
[quote comment="253697"] It’s retarded you people make a distinction between the RIAA and the music industry, as if the RIAA doesn’t represent and solely exist to enforce the music industries agenda. The music industry as a whole is to blame for this situation. The RIAA isn’t some independent organization that exists to profit for its own self. “They” are the must industry.[/quote]
Nope, they are not ‘the music industry’, they are ‘the 4 main record companies’. Its a distinction frowned upon by the RIAA. They do not represent the artists, or the songwriters. They represent the suits, the middlemen. Next you’ll be teling me that the MPAA represents the Film industry too, opposed to the major studios. If they did, there’d be no writers strike.
Paying for the movie in one medium doesn’t mean you’re entitled to it in every other medium. That’s like buying a burger at one McDonald’s and thinking you’re entitled to one at every other McDonald’s. I don’t lend things to people; I make a copy and give it to them. And whether the RIAA represents every company in the industry or just the important ones isn’t relevant. The RIAA constitutes enough companies to represent a majority of the industry. The RIAA may not directly represent that artists or songwriters, but the suits and middlemen represent the artists and songwriters. So either way the RIAA serves their interests. I realize p2p helps little known or unknown artists get their name out there, but that doesn’t mean it helps sales for known artists. It’s easy to say “I would pay for it if it were cheaper”, or whatever the fuck, but its not. So just steal it, admit its stealing, and continue on your merry way. I don’t understand why you people need to justify stealing someone’s property by claiming is sharing or they can afford it or its wrong or waaa it’s not fair. Why can’t the concept of stealing just be embraced?! You pseudo-revolutionaries need to get off your high horse stop thinking you’re some kinda new age Thomas Paine.
I too hate what the RIAA is doing and their methods. But they are within their rights based on our outdated laws. And just to note that it was the jury that decided the penalty of 200k, not the judge or the RIAA. Now that’s fugd. How did a room full of people who probably have no industry knowledge let alone technical knowledge come up with that? Must have been the same group in the McDonalds coffee crotch incident. Our country IS out of control and we need to take it back. I agree with the above poster…put your efforts into tangibles rather than online rants. Write you congressmen, write the RIAA/MPAA, hell write you favorite artists and tell them the end is nigh. We won’t stand for this much longer.
I wonder if someone could persuade the artist whose songs she ’stole’ to pay the judgment for her. That would be feking classic. Maybe Trent Reznor would step up?
Sorry for interrupt, but more terrible news:
http://www.p2pnet.net/story/14490
I think we should have a civil war.
This is all happening because of Bush and Clinton.
Bush is a war criminal, breaking constitutional laws, breaking the Geneva Conventions, taking bribes for passing bills, and manslaughter on a large scale.
He should get the death penalty for all the crimes against America, crimes against Humanity, and for TREASON.
Yes Bush has commit treason. He works to destroy America.
He wants the elite to be powerful and happy.
In fact Having a civil war is the most Patriotic thing we can do cause Bush hates freedom fighters (fighters fighting for freedom) and hes against freedom.
Bush is a Political Criminal.
WE Need to fight a civil war, no matter what the costs are.
We need revolution, if Ron Paul, isn’t elected then we need to fight this government cause the constitution or Deceleration of I. said we should try to change our corrupt corporate government or Abolish it to to the ground.
[quote comment="253610"]The only difference between the devil and the riaa is that the devil asks for a contract before he takes your soul.[/quote]
actually they do contracts to artists thats why they can’t share music for free and so we have to pirate it.
The RIAA is the devil.
America’s society is a crumbling sanctuary which will soon fall on its self if we Americans do not do something about it. It is this type of business practice which cripples our society and for which I do not support the RIAA any and other group like them. I agree with many people here that are against the RIAA and there decisions and reasons why they are against them.
As for Malarkey, I think you need to do much more research into why RIAA and other industries like them are hurting the consumers and the artists. The RIAA does hurt the artist more when suing the fans that enjoy the music. IF the music industry as a whole would actually put something out there that people would enjoy instead of blaming p2p as the root cause of everything. Then I think they wouldn’t have so much of a problem.
Ok Malarkey I have a question for you. If you were a song writer and the RIAA started suing your fans because they shared your music and you get free publicity by the consumer for sharing a song with another. How would you feel that your fan that enjoyed your music or a person who found your song by having it shared is being sued? The image alone for being sued by the very artist that you liked will no longer have the value it once did.
Also for talking to our lobbyist’s, I think you need to understand a little economics. Right now our society is running off of laws created by businesses that have monopoly. Look at the RIAA, MPAA, and even ongoing cable giants like Comcast and others. They are the ones that want to change the laws for their own bidding. To give them free range to do anything. Mr malarkey I think you are fighting a losing battle though I am always up for a good debate.
We were always taught that sharing is the right thing to do.
Why has that changed?
What has happened to the moral fabric of our country?
WHY CAN’T I FUCKING SHARE WITH PEOPLE ANYMORE WITHOUT SOMEONE CALLING IT STEALING?
RIAA: THEY HATE SHARING. THEY HATE AMERICA. AND THEY ESPECIALLY HATE ANYONE WHO SAYS THAT SHARING IS CARING. SO THEY HATE CHILDREN. AND CHILDREN’S TV. AND GOOD PEOPLE EVERYWHERE.
Anon, America is run off of greed. People don’t have enough money. It comes to a point of how much is enough.
I agree with you Networking in general was created to share files from one location to another. Also to communicate to other people. In America if you your not making money off of something it’s easy to put a blame on something else. What these industries need to understand is why was the internet created in the first dam place. The reason why they hate it is because they aren’t making money off a great concept to address thousands of people at onces
All you people who talk about civil wars and revolutions are retarded. The president is a puppet of the party. Realize there are three branches of government; the executive is only one of them. The congress and senate hold more responsibility for what’s going on than the President. The president represents the party, he is their tool. You think the president is chosen to be the representative of the party, is elected to office, and then just gets to do whatever he wants?! All this talk about his supposed crimes is moronic. The majority of the government is complicit, and has to be for “his” decisions to have any effect. And Blacklotus, you talk about how our society is now run by industries and monopolies influencing government, I think you need to read a history book. There hasn’t been a division between economics and government since the nation’s inception. Also, your question about my fan getting sued, I say GOOD! The fan is a customer, I’m in it for the money and the customer stole from me. Sharing isn’t sharing if you don’t have the other person’s permission, its STEALING! Snap out of your communist fantasy and realize America is a country of laws that protects property and business practices. I don’t even know why I’m arguing about this. I’m downloading as I type this. It just vexes me none the responders seem to grasp the concept of property rights, or stealing, and this idiotic idealism?! WTF
You know one thing that never seems to get mentioned when th recording industry is talking about loss of income is that a lot of people are boycotting them already.
I’m never going to buy a music CD ever again, or DVD for that matter. That goes for my family and many friends also.
The power is in the consumer.
The recording industry should take this into consideration also before blaming it squarely on p2p.
I would recommend everyone not only rant here, but tell everyone you know. Don’t buy any DVD’s or CD’s until these morons are on their knees.
It’s also strange how the communism argument tends to pop up in these arguments. Communism in theory is actually a great system. It just takes afew greedy pricks to ruin it .
Finally, I don’t think Ron Paul will make it as president for you guys, if he becomes too much of a threat, the powers that be will sort something out. It’s the American way.
The only thing I buy with my money are model kits since you can’t DL them.
Greed doesn’t just ruin communism, it ruins everything. Think democracy is good? ask the Russians right this moment if they prefer being rich with restricted liberties or starving.
Democracy is crap now that laws are decided by lobbyist and corporations flush with cash. A true democracy would have pirates dictating the law. We outnumber the corporations on the per-person count, but they outnumber us on a per-dollar count. Let’s all do our part in cutting down their cash reserves to make sharing and distribution of information truly free.
Copyright infringement is NOT theft!!
Stop calling this stealing. Nothing was stolen here. There was no loss of property or anything of value.
[quote comment="253855"]Copyright infringement is NOT theft!!
Stop calling this stealing. Nothing was stolen here. There was no loss of property or anything of value.[/quote]
Very true.
It’s not stealing, and i agree anyone who calls it that deserves to be flamed.
Nothing of value has been taken away so it can’t be stealing .
I prefer to call it,
- Proactive redistribution of wealth -
LOL
Seriously though, to call it stealing is pretty pathetic.
America is becoming the shame of the world.
And my country (NL) is just following it footsteps.
Sick, sick, sick.
That’s sad. The Netherlands used to be such a liberal place.
Well.. looks like Malaysia is also following America.. they are starting to sue downloaders now
Malaysia? wtf? Probably ’cause you’re taking business from those 3 story retail stores selling nothing but pirated material.
Actually, anyone know how to go about getting intellectual property rights?
I want in on this money spinner too.
I’ll just shoot some pics. make some crappy music, dump it on the internet and sue.
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