MPAA Executive Tampers With Evidence In Piracy Case 156
An anonymous reader writes "TorrentFreak reports on an internet piracy case from Finland, which saw four men found guilty and fined €45,000. During the trial, the defense attorney took note of inconsistencies in log files used as evidence against the men. An investigator for international recording industry organization IFPI revealed after questioning that the files had been tampered with. He said an MPAA executive was present when the evidence gathering took place, and altered the files to hide the identity of 'one of their spies.' 'No one from the MPAA informed the defense that the edits had been made and the tampering was revealed at the worst possible time – during the trial. This resulted in the prosecutor ordering a police investigation into the changes that had been made. "Police then proceeded by comparing the 'work copy' that the IFPI investigator produced with the material that police and the defending counsels had received. Police found out that the material had differences in over 10 files," Hietanen reveals.'"
And... (Score:5, Insightful)
Some how I doubt it will matter (Score:5, Insightful)
I predict that unless it is proven that they fabricated evidence, the person on trial will still get convicted, and the MPAA will get nothing more than a verbal slap on the wrist.
Deletion of exculpatory evidence is one thing, but deletion to hide a source is simply redaction, which governments do daily. They will laugh it off as a minor oversight.
Re:Some how I doubt it will matter (Score:5, Insightful)
I predict that unless it is proven that they fabricated evidence, the person on trial will still get convicted, and the MPAA will get nothing more than a verbal slap on the wrist.
Deletion of exculpatory evidence is one thing, but deletion to hide a source is simply redaction, which governments do daily. They will laugh it off as a minor oversight.
... and you're suppose to just take their word that those were the only changes? If they had access to make changes then the chain of evidence is tainted... who knows that happened.
Re:And... (Score:5, Insightful)
MPAA is legalized form of organized crime (Score:1, Insightful)
Re:Some how I doubt it will matter (Score:5, Insightful)
Read the story.
4 Defendants previously found guilty are still guilty.
2 Defendants previously acquitted are still acquitted.
Nothing has changed.
Police had untouched copies and that is how the differences were found. No evidence was manufactured, only some non-related material was deleted to protect their source. This is a procedural error at worst (failure to notify). Lawyers get a tongue lashing and nothing more.
Re:Handcuffs (Score:5, Insightful)
Usually I don't support "send a message" type of prosecutions (Aaron Swartz, as just one example) but these guys need to be smacked down, hard. Fines are insufficient; anything short of significant jail time won't do a damn thing to the MAFIAA sociopathic execs who honestly believe they are above the law.
A message needs to be sent, and this looks to be an open and shut case. I sure hope to see handcuffs.
Hope all you want. Fuck-all will be done. MAFIAA earned their synonymous name, and are just as powerful.
Watch and see.
Vigilante Justice (Score:5, Insightful)
This is something I am troubled by on a regular basis. It is increasingly clear that our government and legal system are stacked against common citizens.
At some point, it will occur to those being prosecuted for sharing some songs on the internet and being fined for more than they'll ever make in their lifetime, that the U.S. is a dictionary definition of a fascist state where government is intertwined with corporations and industry. The real problems are the corporate executives that can do this crap with no repercussions. There needs to be repercussions. If the legal system doesn't provide a way to bring the fight to the door of the powerful, then I fear that the our society will break down to the point where citizens must be vigilantes to get any sort of justice over the prosecutors, politicians, and the people who run the corporations.
Re:Handcuffs (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:And... (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm not. Prosecutors generally take a dim view of someone else tampering with evidence. It is one thing for them to twist things and entirely different when someone else does it.
Re:Handcuffs (Score:5, Insightful)
pre-dawn raid, shoot their pets, haul everyone found near their compounds out for questioning, trash their house, charge them with RICO.
and most importantly, freeze their bank accounts so they can't pay for lawyers.
Lets also call all their freinds, family, and furture employers to let them all know what scumbags they are, and lets run a special on them in gangland.
Re:Vigilante Justice (Score:2, Insightful)
This is exactly the issue I'm concerned about. "Second amendment solutions" are not a solution in a working society. It means that something is seriously wrong.
Re:And... (Score:2, Insightful)
On a very minor technicality. The alteration wouldn't have altered the outcome of the trial. The IFPI weren't falsifying evidence. They just wanted to hide a piece of information that might compromise other ongoing investigations. The only thing they did wrong was not properly document the redaction.
Re:And... (Score:5, Insightful)
Why assuming IFPI is telling the truth now, when they've already been caught lying?
Re:And... (Score:5, Insightful)
That's not the thing that really amazes me. What amazes me is that he gets to explain why he tampered with the evidence. Why is that in any way relevant? Evidence that has been tampered with by either party is worthless. Yes, I will even believe him that he only tried to erase his tracks and how he was entrapping the defendant, but in what way does this make it better?
Re:And... (Score:5, Insightful)
Maybe. Prove it!
It's now on them to prove that this was the only thing altered. You alter your source IP, you can as well alter what he downloaded. Show me evidence that you didn't.
Re:Fisticuffs. (Score:4, Insightful)
Only 'cause it's cheaper and more profitable for them to make the weapons, sell them to the government, then have government pay for the army and its use to "liberate" the resources they need.
The only reason why we won't see the big "corp wars" of Cyberpunk is simply that it's not cost effective. Why bother fighting when you can use governments to do it for you, for free?