Michelle Santangelo demands trial by jury
p2pnet news | RIAA News:- When I first spoke to Michelle Santangelo, she was telling me how proud she was of the stand her mother, Patti, was making against EMI (Britain), Vivendi Universal (France), Sony BMG (Japan and Germany) and Warner Music (US), the multi-billion-dollar members of the Big 4 organised music cartel.
At the time, Patti was directly in line of fire with the labels using their US enforcement unit, the RIAA, to accuse her of being a massive, and illegal, online distributor of copyrighted music.
Acting for was Jordan Glass, a one-man legal firm operating from his home.
With the help of p2pnet readers who raised more than $15,000 to pay for disbursements (Jordan was donating his time), Patti fought the RIAA legal teams to a standstill.
The Big 4 knew full well she was no illegal distributor:. She was, however, an integral part of the bizarre game plan under which the labels are attempting to sue their own customers into becoming compliant consumers.
Their real targets were Michelle, who was 16 when the onslaught began, and her brother Bobby, pictured with her here, who was only 12 at the time.
Trial by jury
Now it’s Michelle’s turn and although she was terrified of becoming an RIAA victim, she’s nonetheless showing the same kind of grit and determination displayed by her mother, demanding a trial by jury so she can tell her story to the same kind of people who comprise the approximately 30,000 men and women and children who’ve been singled out for special treatment by the Big 4.
Jordan Glass is also representing her and the two have already achieved what can be counted as an early victory against the labels.
Federal district court judge Stephen C. Robinson ruled a $35,000 judgment against Michelle could be vacated, meaning it was dropped, allowing her to pleading her case as if the ruling had never been made.
Equally important, the order had also given her a negative credit record, which would have followed her through life.
Now, in Elektra v Santangelo II, Michelle has filed papers opposing the RIAA’s motion for attorneys fees; and, filed her answer, counterclaims and jury demand, says Recording Industry vs The People.
Having over years already made an utter misery of the lives of this New York family, will Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG now agree they’ve had their pound of flesh and leave the Santangelos to get on with their lives in peace?
Not a chance and in the meanwhile, Mitch Bainwol and Carry Sherman, the two men who orchestrate the RIAA’s activities, will no doubt continue to wonder why they and the organisation they serve is being so widely demonised by so many people, literally millions of them ex-Big 4 customers.
Who needs who?
The labels believe that they’re above it all and that they can continue to terrorise people with impunity.
But they’re wrong.
This is the digital 21st century and thanks to blogs, email, cell phones, texting, and so on, for the first time in history, people around the world can communicate instantly with each other, completely by-passing the vested interest corporate media which until the Net, were the primary means of communication.
Michelle and people like her are in charge.
They don’t need the labels. But the labels need them.
Definitely stay tuned.
Jon Newton – p2pnet
Click the mic on the right to hear David Bannister’s p2pnetcast of this story >>>>
Also See:
real targets – New RIAA attack on Michelle Santangelo, december 21, 2006
early victory – Michelle Santangelo vs the RIAA, July 16, 2007
30,000 men and women and children – I lived a nightmare: RIAA victim, June 14, 2007
Recording Industry vs The People – Michelle Santangelo Opposes RIAA Request for Attorneys Fees, Files Answer, Counterclaims, Jury Demand, August 9, 2007
so widely demonised – Cary Sherman RIAA rant, November 13, 2006
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August 9th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
I really hope she gets it. As soon as the verdict is left in the hands of rational, unbiased jurors, they’ll realize how ridiculous the RIAA’s claims are.
August 10th, 2007 at 11:32 am
This misic parasites know that they can not win this one. Not in front of a popular Jury.
(If I was in the Jury I wll laught at them.)
They are going to push this as far as they can (or until they get shoot) but eventually they will have to fall back with their tail between their legs.
Then they will be charged with attorney fee. and I hope that it will be a lot!
August 11th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
If they win the right to trial by jury, which to be perfectly honest, she shouldn’t need to apply for and ‘win’, if there is even one sysadmin or even half technicaly minded person selected for said jury, who can explain DNS, NAT and IP addressing to the rest, game over RIAA.