OU Players arrested for cocaine

[fro daddy]

1620 nearly did, but the guy stopped halfway and said, "No, that can't be true." And then had some people go fact-check.

 

This is a douchebag move (by the Husker fan), who I'll bet didn't realize the serious implications of doing what he did. But Landry Jones' father doesn't need to stoop down and match his douchebaggery by prosecuting him "to the full extent of the law." Puh-lease.

 

 

The whole "I've got deep enough pockets to do it." statement was just over the top. Like I said earlier, what the fan did was wrong and he could, by law, be sued over it. However that jacka** statement by Landry's dad made me loss all symthapy. They have caused him public shame, I personnally think thats enough even though they could take it further

[Axl_sued_me]

" The truth is, you can be sued for ANYTHING these days......literally."

 

 

 

That is very true. Like the family that sued dateline and NBC because their molester son/husband commited suicide after the tv crew and cops approached his house to arrest him.

 

i'm with you about a law suit crazy America. But this suprisingly has merit. It more than anything is a perfect example of someone who just has too much time on their hands

 

 

 

Has merit??? Maybe. But c'mon. This is the sports world. Rival fans do crazier things to each other and that's how it is. Things like this happen all the time in good fun. It's not like he's ripping an OU fan's testicles out of his pants. This wouldn't be an issue if the father wasn't such a d*ck. God forbid this guy's son play for Michigan and have to deal with OSU fans.

 

"I'm going to prosecute him to the fullest extent of the law," Jones said. "I've got deep enough pockets to do it."

 

 

 

 

To post a fake news story using a format from a real newspaper is another.

 

 

Well let me ask you this. From a legal standpoint, is there a difference between what this guy did, and taking a picture of Bill Callahan and photoshoping it to make it look like he's homeless or he's hitchhiking?

[AZ4NE1]

I thought it was cleaver, but I also got my degree in broadcasting and had enough communication law courses to scary my rear end straightIts not rediculous or unwarrented...

 

...ANYTHING you say in media form (newspaper, radio, website, message board and even blogs) can come back to haunt you. If you write something it had better be true or close to it. ..

 

Can you prove those statements?

 

I'll agree this was a boneheaded move, but the only party I see being successful in a lawsuit would be the newspaper for format something or other.

 

This could set a bad precedent.

 

When I 1st read your post, I thought you were Tuff Tiger (T.A.R.)..The spelling threw me off.

[Ohio Pete]

Isn't this well trod ground in the Falwell v. Penthouse (or was it Hustler) case? The alleged libel/slander was interpreted as parody and is thus protected as free speech.

 

Still doesn't make it right though.

[fro daddy]

Its not rediculous or unwarrented...

 

...ANYTHING you say in media form (newspaper, radio, website, message board and even blogs) can come back to haunt you. If you write something it had better be true or close to it. ..

 

Can you prove those statements?

 

I'll agree this was a boneheaded move, but the only party I see being sucessful in a lawsuit would be the newspaper for format something or other.

 

This could set a bad precident.

 

 

These things are can be brought on a libel or slander case

Attacks on a person's professional character or standing;

Allegations that an unmarried person is unchaste;

Allegations that a person is infected with a sexually transmitted disease;

Allegations that the person has committed a crime of moral turpitude;

 

The act is considered common law. In this case what the husker fan did is lible, because it was in written form or printed medium (i.e. newpaper, magizine, online article). Slander is when its spoken word.

 

 

It is different from the Cally pictures because that was a parody of a well know figure. You couldnt prove it caused any harm to his reputaion and was not done to try and cause harm.

The reason it could be a law suit in this case is it was done in malace and the figures could claim that harm was done to their reps because of a false crime allegation

 

Look at it this way, on the news they have to say that someone is suspected of a crime. They can't say that person is guilty or say they commited the crime until after the trial proves they are. If a news anchor said that joe blow was arrested for commiting 'xyz' crime, instead of joe blow was arrested on suspecion of 'xyz' that could cause a law suit.

[Dave M.]

No...a joke would be someone saying OU players wear pink polka dotted thongs during a game....that's a joke. Accusing someone of cocaine distribution using a template to mimic a newspaper (Daily Oklahoman) and posting it on the internet isn't.

 

 

They posted on a message board. Not exactly a reliable place to look for FACTS and NEWS. But I'm not saying whether this is right or wrong. But filing a lawsuit is going overboard.

 

To: Axl Sued me... This husker fan is a jackass. He not only cut and paste the heading of the newspaper which he posted on the messageboard, he then also posted a link to a webpage that was his that he made looklike the newspapers. For someone just joking he went along way in doing it and should be punished. You may take this as a joke, but many people refuse to do so and you should understand why. If you don't, wait until the stories of you or your family ever get posted somewhere... will you think it's just a joke then after being out on the radio and other outlets? I know you wouldn't like it and anything you say to the contrary just proves you tend not to tell the truth!

[Husker_x]

The stupidity of this fan is mind-boggling.

[macroboy]

I really enjoy the "this guy isn't a real Husker fan, he's an idiot" comments. Having grown up in NE I knew a lot of real huskers fans that were complete idiots!! One does not negate the other.

 

A couple times a year we get a few "real fan" threads going and its kind of pathetic.

 

Bad choice? Yep!

 

Can he be sued? Technically yes, but it would be hard to prove any real damages.

 

Is he a Husker fan? I'm sure he is. He is a Husker fan that did something stupid. Anyone else here guilty of that?

 

The word fan comes from fanatic.

 

GBR

[Axl_sued_me]

I really enjoy the "this guy isn't a real Husker fan, he's an idiot" comments. Having grown up in NE I knew a lot of real huskers fans that were complete idiots!! One does not negate the other.

 

A couple times a year we get a few "real fan" threads going and its kind of pathetic.

 

Bad choice? Yep!

 

Can he be sued? Technically yes, but it would be hard to prove any real damages.

 

Is he a Husker fan? I'm sure he is. He is a Husker fan that did something stupid. Anyone else here guilty of that?

 

The word fan comes from fanatic.

 

GBR

 

 

 

Agree with you about the "husker fan" thing. It's like a cult to some people.

 

But how come nobody is placing any blame on the radio stations that did not do their homework and reported this??

[BIGREDIOWAN]

The guy is a moron and the people who reported it as fact are morons as well.

[HSKRNOKC]

But how come nobody is placing any blame on the radio stations that did not do their homework and reported this??

 

They are just as much to blame.

[topekahusker]

All in all, this is not funny...it changed the guy's life forever.

 

Being a Nebraska fan or Texas, A&M, Horned Frog, Jayhawk, etc, etc, fan has nothing to do with it bottom line.

 

He's made a serious mistake and will pay to defend himself with hefty legal fees. Posts above are correct - you can be sued for ANYTHING!

 

That is why I carry a $1,000,000 umbrella policy policy on my homeowners so I have some defense if I ever do something stupid. Thank God I've never been sued or have had to sue someone (but I'm getting ready to go for a big business debt)

[Dundermifflinite]

What's AR have to say about this one?

[husker rob]

i want to read the FARK that he posted. I think that it took alot of imagination to think of something like that.

 

now for the radio stations that read it and took it as real news and ran with it with out veryifing it to be true, they are the complete idiots.

 

it is a f-ing message board. people that take everything to be true that is posted on a message board need to stay away from the internet for their own saftey.

 

do people remember all of the bullsh#t that I Bleed Red posted. Do you remember how many of you sheep, were begging for him to post his "Inside Information"

 

if you bought into everything that he said was going to happen, then Turner Gill is our OC and Mike Stoops is the DC.

 

some people need to get a fricking grip

[AR Husker Fan]

What's AR have to say about this one?

I haven't seen the actual posting, so I'm making a few assumptions here. Primarily, that there was nothing in it to indicate that it was false; i.e., nothing that would indicate it was an attempt at a joke. Assuming that' correct, it is almost certainly defamation.

 

Defamation is any intentional false communication, either written or spoken, that harms a person's reputation; decreases the respect, regard, or confidence in which a person is held; or induces disparaging, hostile, or disagreeable opinions or feelings against a person.

 

The first thing is - are the players considered public figures or private figures. The difference is significant. If you are a public figure, you have to prove actual malice before you can get damages. In other words, you have to prove that the person who committed the defamation actually did so with the intent of harming you. If you are a private figure, you don't hae to prove malace - you only have to prove that the person issued an intentionally false communication that harmed your reputation, decreased respect for you or confidence in you, or caused others to harbor disparaging, hostile, or disagreeable opinions or feelings toward you.

 

So...are the players public or private figures? Most likely, private...

 

A public figure is one whose name is so familiar to the public that it's virtually a household word. In sports, Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods would be examples of public figures. College players hardly rise to that level.

 

But that doesn't automatically mean that they are private figures. There is a category called limited-purpose public figures. These are people that are voluntarily injected into a public controversy and becomes a public figure for a limited range of issues. This group also have to prove actual malice.

 

So, are the players limited-purpose public figures? Probably not. The U.S. Supreme Court has held, essentially, that a limited-purpose public figure is one that seeks public scrutiny in order to influence others on matters of public controversy. Hardly a college football player.

 

So, they are private figures. They don't have to prove malice - they simply have to prove that the false statement was made and that they were damaged.

 

Were they damaged? No way for me to tell - but I should think it wouldn't be hard to find people who read that post, believed it to be true, and then had "decreased respect, regard, or confidence" in the players, or had "disparaging, hostile, or disagreeable opinions or feelings against" the players.

 

Long story short (bet ya wished you'd jumped to the end of this post, huh?), I think the players have an excellent case. The fact that the poster used a news outlet's template is indicative of a desire to actually convince readers of the "legitimacy" of the posting.

 

Hope the poster has a good attorney, a helluva insurance policy, and lots of interest in seeing the inside of a courtroom...