Newspaper Publisher Issued Subpoena Demanding Names Of Online Commenters

May 25, 2011 @ 1:18AM

Newspaper Publisher Issued Subpoena Demanding Names Of Online Commenters

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The Maui County District Attorney has issued a subpoena against a newspaper publisher, demanding he hand over indentifying information of online commenters who were critical of a police officer caught in the above video assaulting the publisher.

Maui Time publisher Tommy Russo - who apparently was served the subpoena on Tuesday - was involved in an altercation with the officer last month as well as with a Dog the Bounty Hunter security guard after Russo refused to stop videotaping them.

There is not much information on the web at this point about the subpoena, except an article in the Hawaii Independent that was posted late last night, but if this is true, then the district attorney is overreaching in its investigation because the commenters had nothing to do with the actual incident.

In fact, if the district attorney's office had any sense of ethics, it would file charges of assault against the police officer as well as charges of assault and theft against the security guard.

The Independent reported that the Association of Alternative Weeklies will be protesting the subpoena, although nothing about that appears on its site at this moment.

Update:

According to Blog of New Orleans, the subpoena seeks to find the identity of one commenter who left the following comment.

nothing new here

April 15, 2011 | 04:02 AM

the MPD,, the ONLY reason I own a LARGE CALIBRE, high powered rifle.

who needs criminals with this bunch of dog eating public menances running around.

Johnson needs a bullet when he walks out his door.

Federal Reserve

As a guy who has been running this blog for more than four years, I've seen a fair share of bravado-laden comments, which come from people talking out of their asses.

This is no different. The real crimes were caught on camera. How come they are not being prosecuted?

Comments

Happy Tinfoil Cat

1 year ago

LOL, Why do they have to flaunt their low intelligence?

Bergman

1 year ago

The ability to recognize and judge competence in oneself and in others is one of the various traits and skills that collectively make up competence.

In other words, the incompetent don't know they are.

Guy Fawkes

1 year ago

They're flaunting their corruption, not necessarily the same thing.

POPO2

1 year ago

Great, now they'll try to harass some clueless guy that left his wireless router unencrypted, and his neighbor made threats against the police on that website.

What we need is overlapping independent police agencies to keep a each other in line. If the police feared other cops, this wouldn't be an issue. I know countless cops that have gotten out of DUI's just by flashing their badge. I guess it's not dangerous when cops do it. What a sad world we live in.

Elliott

1 year ago

Given the lack of any identifiable legal justification this will be quashed in about 2 seconds. Prosecutors are usually immune from lawsuits but a complaint against him with the bar is completely workable.

They are just hoping that the publisher is an idiot.

nevernot

1 year ago

I'm not 100% sure about Hawaii, but in most states if the Prosecutor is found to be retaliating they lose all immunity for their actions. Don't forget they are only authorized to act as a representative of the state, not in their own interests.

Elliott

1 year ago

-snip-

sorry dupe..

John

1 year ago

Maui County District Attorney must hate the bill of rights part about freedom of speech.
Watch him go after PINAC to get the names of the poster of negative comments here.

Iroc

1 year ago

Your freedom of speech rights on a private website only extend as far as the sites owner allows.
Speak only the truth and you have no worries.

btw, let em get my name, I live outside their jurisdiction anyway.

Matt B

1 year ago

True, but we are not talking about what the owner is doing- we are talking about what a member of the state is doing to a private website. And that DOES involve freedom of speech.

"Speak only the truth and you have no worries"

That's just as bad as if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be opposed to being searched.

And actually, you can speak the truth and still have lots of worries. You know, just like the many incidents- including this one!- where you tell the truth, the cop tells a lie, and you still get charged.

Iroc

1 year ago

We're actually talking about the same thing.
If the owner allows you to say anything on his board without censorship or banning, but turns over the names as soon as he is issued a subpena, then you really don't have free speech, just a platform to hang yourself from.

For the record, I'd tell em to pound sand.

Duane Kerzic

1 year ago

I think maybe they need to give a some kind of test before you're allowed to post to a blog. That comment was a bit over the top. I'm sure it was just some guy talking out his ass while starved for O2. You really need to think twice before you say something like that even if you don't really mean it.