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Criminal
Penalties Suggested in S. 2560 are Anti-Consumer and Set Dangerous
Precedent, Says ACU
ACU
Launches Campaign to Oppose S. 2650: Inducing Infringement of Copyrights
Act
ALEXANDRIA,
VA – Third parties should not be held legally liable for the
criminal acts of others solely to appease Hollywood millionaires
and their trial attorney friends, the American Conservative Union
said today in announcing a major advertising campaign opposing S.
2560 the "Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act of 2004."
"This misguided
legislation would hold manufacturers of computers, software and
other technologies criminally liable if their legal products were
misused to reproduce copyrighted material," ACU Executive Director
Richard Lessner said announcing the organization's ad campaign.
"It
is a basic foundation of American jurisprudence, recognized in the
Supreme Court's landmark Sony Betamax decision, that those who actually
violate copyrights should be held criminally responsible, not those
who manufactured the computer, VCR, copy machine, or computer software
used to infringe. S. 2560 is tantamount to holding gun makers liable
for the acts of armed criminals, or automakers responsible for drunk
drivers."
While
the protection of intellectual property rights is an important issue,
Lessner said, and the infringement of copyrights is a serious problem,
S. 2560 is an overly broad remedy. It would penalize technology
producers for "inducing" others to act criminally. The
bill's standard of inducement, however, is so subjective that it
would chill technological innovation, severely restrict consumer
choice in the marketplace, and create a whole new class of lawsuits
for predatory trial attorneys.
"Unfortunately,
this misguided legislation's chief sponsor is Sen. Orrin Hatch,
a Republican who should know better," Lessner said. "ACU
is launching a major advertising campaign to educate the public
and Republicans in Congress about the dangerous nature of this trial-attorney
boondoggle.
"An
important principle is at stake here. If this bill were to become
law, it would set a precedent for holding innocent Americans liable
for indirectly 'inducing' criminal acts in others. The implications
are staggering."
ACU's
campaign launches today with an advertisement in The Weekly Standard.
The ad also will appear in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington
Times, National Review, Human Events, and selected web sites.
http://www.conservative.org/pressroom/Ad2REv4.pdf
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To
arrange for an interview with Richard Lessner contact Ian Walters
at (703) 836-8602 x16 or by email at
iwalters@conservative.org
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