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A copy of the ACORN/Breitbart/O’Keefe/Giles suit…

By: Moe Lane (Diary)  |  September 23rd, 2009 at 07:57 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

…may be found here:


ACORN v OKeefe –

Background here (via Hot Air). They’re trying for the ‘audio recording without permission’ angle – however: I am not a lawyer, but I have been told by at least three that Section 23 can be used to justify discovery.

As a direct and proximate result of the actions of defendants, ACORN has suffered injury to its reputation.

The word “DOOM” was not used in relation to ACORN’s fate, but only because nobody thought to do so.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

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COMMENTS

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  • Swamp_Yankee

    http://law.justia.com/maryland/codes/gcj/10-402.html

  • Duke

    A national crime syndicate can get caught red-handed and they get to sue the people that caught them.

    Hope and change to the max!

  • cableguymn

    “As a direct and proximate result of the actions of defendants, ACORN has suffered injury to its reputation.”

    Seems to me.. and I am no lawyer.. Acorn ALLOWED their employees to damage it’s reputation. If the employees had been properly trained, or at least not brain dead (oh no I might be a defendant next) they would have done the right thing and turned them away and/or contacted the police.

    They are suing the wrong people. Try your ex-employees.

    Sorry Acorn. You made your bed, sleep in it.

    Plus, Acorns rep as been poo for a long long time anyways.

    I can’t wait for discovery.

  • Leopard1996

    I mean doesn’t ABC record people without their consent all the time for those sting operation shows.

  • Aaron Gardner

    ACORN does have some major cajones though….from my math they are looking for more that $3 million out of this.

    $500000 compensatory damages for each fired worker…..wow I need to get wrongfully terminated from ACORN so I can retire.

    Plus a cool million for punitive damages. Good times.

  • spaceman_spiff

    Bring on discover!

  • Scope

    I think by Breitbart that they welsomed a lawsuit from ACORN. The glee was in the “discovery process” as they (AOORN) have a heck of a lot more to lose, expose, than the Filmmaker and his cohort, or those that brought this forward. I make a gazillion dollar bet that ACORN drops the lawsuit when Bertha Butts realizes what she has to lose.

  • Swamp_Yankee

    The statute applies to “interceptions”. Usually, these types of stautes apply to third parties (e.g. some one surrepticiously tapes a couple having sex.) Remember lucianne and Lewinsky, that was not a crime either and that was MAryland.

    Maryland is not a consent state. I dont think you do not need someone consent to tape them.

    This seems like a pretty good breakdown.

    http://www.rightgrrl.com/tripp/woods.html

    Sleep easy my crusading young friends. Its all Bullsh*t.

  • Scope

    I don’t see you in that light. I know you are only kidding LOL.

  • Swamp_Yankee

    I said lucianne. by an accident

  • cableguymn

    is gonna be good. Discovery is likely going to lead to acorn dropping the case. (I think they can do that)

    When they press to hard for info Acorn does not want out in the public watch for them to pull the suit.

  • Aaron Gardner
  • Shayelyn

    I thought it was determined that for like two years, ACORN should not have been operating in Maryland anyway. How can you possibly sue people for doing something to you when you weren’t supposed to be doing business in the state to begin with? And they want money for fired workers? My mom always told me you can’t have it both ways. The cajones on some people!

  • cableguymn

    Unless acorn is saying “opps we should not have fired them” in that case, restore their employment, and give um back pay. Yes, the employees where “setup” but they took the bait, hook, line, and sinker.

    I’d bet this case gets dismissed or pulled by Acorn before the juicy acorn details get out.

  • http://www.werushdaily.com Rightshift

    ACORN = Child Prostitution + Human Trafficking + Tax Evasion * Voter Fraud * Corruption Convictions ^2 Obama’s comments on “this is not a big deal” after he was their attorney and trainer.

    Do you think they want to add to the above equation if they go forward with this? You can anchor an aircraft carrier with the weight the discovery brings to ACORN’s demise.

    The writing is on the Wall, ACORN… How did Daniel translate it?

    God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; you have been weighed on the scales and found wanting

  • Aaron Gardner
  • cableguymn

    I just wish Acorn was ;)

  • tampatraveler

    Where do we contribute to “The Good Guys” Legal Defense Fund !!

    Though we strike from the shadows, do not think we lack the courage to stand in the light.
    ~Zeratul

  • bags64

    as someone who is unfamiliar w/ legal proceedings, what is there about ‘discovery’ that ACORN will be afraid of? what kinds of info can be asked about?

  • harlan

    …in an effort to protect the First Amendment rights of ALL Americans, it will be illegal to attempt to investigate and thus, as a result, prosecute criminal activity.

    …unless of course, the criminal (and/or criminal organization) freely and of his own sense of moral decorum turns himself (or herself) and all relevant evidence over to the appropriate authorities along with an apology for committing said criminal activity.

  • billyd

    Acorn is saying their “Reputation was damaged”. Now as a defendent, you have to be provided all the info you deem relative regarding their “reputation” prior to it being “Damaged”. Now i’m no lawer, but i’ve been involved in a few cases. If you want to establish a reputation… It encompases EVERYTHING!!! Finances, activities, relationships, EVERYTHING!!! ACORN

  • http://moelane.com/ Moe Lane

    That’s the real reason why the Left fought so hard against FISA granting telecom immunity: they wanted to be able to bring suit against the telecoms, then datamine to a fare-thee-well in the discovery phase.

  • minncon

    Whoa, man, those ACORN people are REALLY stupid… filing a lawsuit is dumb enough, but then demanding a jury trial, making their only hope is to find 12 people who are ACORN fans. Breitbart et al. should file a countersuit – I don’t know for what, but they should come up with something, so when win, it’ll bankrupt ACORN.

  • http://www.the41stvote.org rcov092

    The Whistleblower Act? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistleblower

    May as well make the oBAMA ADMINSITRATION OWN THIS FOR THE NEXT 3 YEARS…TILL HE IS Gone!

  • http://fairfaxgardener.blogspot.com ddstrain

    Breitbart was editor at Drudge during the whole Goldberg/Tripp/Lewinsky wiretap controversy. I think it likely that Breitbart et al knew all about the wiretap laws in MD, NY, DC and CA going into this.

    hmmm…

  • http://fairfaxgardener.blogspot.com ddstrain
  • Next93

    Is it my imagination, or is this essentially an admission of guilt?

    Seems to me there’s a massive difference between “we did nothing wrong” and “how DARE you tape us”?

  • http://www.the41stvote.org rcov092

    otherwise, then of course ACORN will find a friendly jury. They are probably recruiting for Juror trolls now.

    ACORN Dissappears. Is renamed:

    NORCA : New Organization Renamed for Criminal Activity

  • http://dezignworx-ae.com tsquare

    First? we don?t have any Attorneys on the site? Hmmm?

    Next? this is as bad as the guy that breaks into your house then sues you for falling down the stairs.

    As others have pointed out, this is going to be a very tricky case for them ACORN, to fight.

    The whole 1st Amendment thing
    The criminal act thing (trying to suppress the tape showing the criminal act, while the tape is the centerpiece of their claim)
    Proving damage (all those fraud convictions all over the country)
    Not loosing control of their information dug out at time of discovery

    And oh, the counter charges? just what will Breitbart counter with? RICO? Calling for depositions/testimony from half of the West Wing? How about calling all those Senators and Congress Critters and ask them ?why did you vote to cut ACORN funding? This incident? Not the dozens of voter fraud convictions?? How uncomfortable will that be? Not to mention, a ?full disclosure? of Congress Critters relationship with ACORN

    This opens ACORN to a whole bunch of jeopardy? legal and political.

    Fun times?

  • http://www.the41stvote.org rcov092

    that ACORN is suing in Baltimore to also try to force Hannah and James to claim the Fifth under the threat by the incredibly corrupt Baltimore DA.

  • http://barnettlaw.org Frozen_Man

    I worked as a law clerk for the ACLJ for the last couple of years of law school and this is just the type of thing they would help with. Surely some group like the ACLJ or Alliance Defense Fund will help with the litigation of this matter.

  • martellus

    Good point is that the suit is in MD which is a deep blue state and in Baltimore county where you can count the Republicans on the fingers of one hand. It is a favorable place to pull a jury for ACORN.

    The BAD point is discovery. They can now demand the books for ACORN going back to their inception. They can demand to show that since their were other miscreants in California and other States. They can show the indictments. They can bring in the brothers and demand to see all evidence regarding the embezzlement,.

    Anything that will show what would lead a reasonable person to set up this sting operation.

    Get this they can also bring in every instance where local or national TV or print media set up sting operations in MD. In a word ACORN was dammed crazy to file this suit.

  • 6eorge Jetson

    Leftist authoritarian bully tactics work great in the shadows. When they become the National Headline, they better get ready for an honest examination and pushback like they’ve never experienced before.

  • http://www.brusbits.blogspot.com twobeers

    “22. As a direct and proximate result of the actions of defendants, Ms. Thompson and Ms. Williams have lost their employment and have suffered extreme emotional distress with attendant physical symptons and injury to their reputations.”

    Uh, no, actually, Ms. Thompson an Ms. Williams lost their employment because ACORN made an independent decision to terminate their employment. As an emailer to Jonah Goldberg indicated, counsel for Breitbart, Giles and O’Keefe will move to disqualify Plaintiffs’ counsel because ACORN and the two individual plaintiffs have a big conflict of interest.

    Moreover, I believe that paragraph 22 exposes plaintiffs and their counsel to possible sanctions. ACORN cannot deny that it made the decision to terminate these employees because of their misconduct. And counsel had to know or reasonably should have known this fact at the time it filed the lawsuit.

    I look forward to the can of whoop-ass that Breitbart, Giles, and O’Keefe will undoubtedly open on ACORN and its former employees

  • Jack_Savage

    …who claimed he injected Clemens with steroids, a lawyer on a sports talk show said that it was a serioous mistake, because in discovery not only could Clemens go after the guy and snoop around, the guy could do the same to Clemens.

    It wasn’t long before Clemens “confessed” to a relationship with a country singer. ACORN may actually destroy itself and really hurt the Dems by pursuing this – of course, they ain’t the sharpest knives in the drawer.

  • http://www.marklaiminger.org Lammo

    in the sense covered by the act you refer to. This feature of the law was developed to protect insiders from retaliation when they report misconduct within the organization they work for, whether internally to management or externally to the press or law enforcement. James and Hannah have done a great service by blowing the whistle on ACORN but they don’t qualify legally as “whistleblowers”.

  • Achance