Chicago cops tell the RIAA — then the DA
p2pnet news view RIAA | MPAA News:- For years p2pnet has been pointing out how Vivendi Universal, EMI, Warner Music and Sony BMG’s RIAA routinely uses taxpayer funded law enforcement agencies for civil copyright infringement ‘operations’.
Hollywood does the same with its MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America), and both entertainment industries also suborn police forces in other countries for identical purposes without a word of complaint from anyone, least of all the police authorities involved.
Now it seems in Chicago, at least, when some local cops find evidence of “unlawful use of unidentified sound or audiovisual recordings”, the first thing they do is call Vivendi Universal, EMI, Warner Music and Sony BMG’s RIAA.
Then they let the local district attorney know.
Online Chicago eNews Park Forest describes how Officer DeVries arrested a man doing 49 mph in a 35 mph zone.
He stopped the vehicle and when he found the driver was under suspension, arrested him.
“During an inventory search of the vehicle as it was being impounded, Officer DeVries located a black computer bag with several spindles of CDs and DVDs with hand-written movie or music titles on them,” says the story, continuing »»»
According to police, during an interview at the Park Forest Police Stateion, Harvey initially claimed that the CDs and DVDs belonged to a friend. Police called the friend, who said he knew nothing about the CDs or DVDs found in the vehicle.
Officer DeVries spoke to Harvey again who allegedly told police that he owns a computer repair business, and purchases illegally copied DVDs and CDs from a friend and gives them to his customers as a sort of perk for hiring him to repair their computers.
Officer DeVries contacted an investigator from the Recording Industry Association of America. Investigator Al Thompson from the RIAA responded to the Park Forest Police Department and recovered a total of 214 CDs and 239 DVDs.
DeVries contacted Cook County Felony Review States Attorney Delahanty who approved two charges of unlawful use of unidentified sound or audiovisual recordings.
And Oh, by the way, the man was, “also charged with speeding, driving on a suspended driver’s license, operation of an uninsured motor vehicle, and open alcohol,” the story mentions in passing.
Buying bootlegged DVD copies
In an earlier case, eNews Park Forest says another man was arrested after being found allegedly selling pirated DVDs and CDs out of a van.
Officer Mannino “was dispatched” to “investigate a report of a solicitor” and discovered didn’t have a valid licence.
The van was impounded and Mannino found, “several movie titles such as The Dark Knight, Step Brothers and Mirrors,” movies that are currently playing in theaters that have not been released on DVD”.
How did he know they weren’t yet on DVDs? The story doesn’t say. Maybe a little birdie told him.
Meanwhile, police interviewed the man, “who allegedly said he began buying bootlegged DVD copies of movies in Chicago,” says the story, adding,” He stated he would take the movies home and burn DVD copies of them on his home computer, label them, and sell them. He allegedly sold the DVDs for $5 each or three for $10, according to police.
“Officer Mannino contacted the Recording Industry Association of America. An investigator from the organization responded to the Park Forest Police Department for further investigation into the incident.
“The investigator inventoried a total of 342 CDs and 292 DVDs.”
The man was charged with two felony counts of unlawful use of unidentified sound or audiovisual recordings.
And Oh Yeh —- he was also charged with driving with a suspended license.
(Cheers, Paulus)
eNews Park Forest – Second Alleged CD/DVD Pirate Loses Sails in Park Forest , September 3, 2008
eNews Park Forest – Police Sink Alleged CD/DVD Pirate’s Ship, August 31, 2008
Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. It’s really easy!Subscribe to p2pnet.net | | rss feed: http://p2pnet.net/p2p.rss | | Mobile – http://p2pnet.net/index-wml.php
Net access blocked by government restrictions? Use Psiphon from the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto. Go here for details.
September 16th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
“Officer DeVries spoke to Harvey again who allegedly told police that he owns a computer repair business, and purchases illegally copied DVDs and CDs from a friend and gives them to his customers as a sort of perk for hiring him to repair their computers.”
Why did he say that?
The right answer was these are my DVDs and CDs that I backup up to keep in the car so that the original are not damaged. If They have the nerve to ask him to provide the originals the answer is I lended all my original to a relative abroad foir now and He will return them to me in few month probably.
What can be say against that? Hum?
By the way this is exactly what I am doing with the CD/DVD I bought when I was not boycotting becauser now I buy no DVD and I buy CD from a very selective of Indiy labels that check OK on the RIAA and BPI radar web sites EXCUSIVELY!
BPI RADAR: http://www.bpiradar.com/
RIAA RADAR: http://www.riaaradar.com/
September 16th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
This was on torrentfreak last week, wasn’t it?
slow news day…
September 16th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
^^ I just looked. There’s a post with one of the eNews Park Forest stories from a couple of days ago.
This is a completely different story with a completely different approach and a completely different source.
Slow news day for you?
Cheers!
September 16th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Hmm:
Y’know how the RIAA/MPAA could actually USE this type of thing? How about something similar to what the Electronic Freedom Foundation has been proposing in regard to p2p file-sharing? The “content companies” could sell a reasonably priced “license” of some kind — maybe 200 bucks a year, I dunno, to anybody who wanted to make copies for commercial purposes, selling them basically.
Then they wouldn’t have to have the vast infrastructure of production plants/shipping, warehousing etc, Wal-mart wouldn’t be able to badger them into selling so-called “clean” versions of works which Walmart doesn’t believe are “family friendly”, and everybody would win.
Another “cottage industry” for people who want to take the time to make physical copies, and yet another way to streamline ther own operations. PLUS — and this seems to me the biggest “selling point” of the whole deal — no wasting an already-overstressed police force/court system on frivolous bullshit just to make multinational corporate megaliths a smidgin more profits.
Don’t get me wrong, I like “profits” just fine, but “profits” squeezed by way of monkeywrenching the “public domain”, destroying the best communications technology humanity has ever had, strangling innovation, and nanny-stating us into oblivion is just unacceptable by any rational standard.