Legal
California Court Dismisses Noriega’s Lawsuit Against Activision
The First Amendment saw another victory when a California court dismissed former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega’s lawsuit against Activision. Noriega claimed that Activision’s game Call of Duty: Black Ops II used his name and likeness without his permission, and it subsequently damaged his reputation. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William Fahey ruled that the game’s use…
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UK Prosecution Spotlights Dangers For Manga Readers
Last week, we reported on a disturbing case in the UK, where Robul Hoque, a 39-year-old UK citizen was convicted of possession of child pornography as a result of owning manga-style images and anime. On its face, a successful child pornography prosecution should be praised, but in this case, the man who was arrested and given…
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UK Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing Illegal Manga
A UK man last week pleaded guilty to 10 counts of possessing illegal manga and anime, a first since manga was added to the country’s child pornography laws in 2010. Robul Hoque of South Bank, Middlesbrough was sentenced to nine months in prison, but the sentence was suspended as long as he does not break…
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Google’s Crime Tip Raises Privacy Concerns
“Hey did you read that email I sent you?” “Nope, but I bet Google did.” For those who think Google can do anything, it turns out you may be on to something. A tip from Google led to the arrest of a man from Texas named John Henry Skillern. He was arrested by local police for possession…
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On the Border of Fourth Amendment Rights
As evidenced by the Ryan Matheson case, one of the risks we face as comics fans is the search and seizure of electronic devices such as cell phones and laptops when we cross international borders. Two recent decisions in Riley v. California and United States v. Wurie seemed to offer some hope that our cell…
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Striking A Balance Between Intellectual Property Rights and Free Speech
With new social media and file sharing websites popping up almost every day, there is an ever-increasing concern with copyright and trademark infringement. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act was introduced in order to help make it easier for these new websites and intellectual property holders to tackle infringement issues. Unfortunately, it seems that more and…
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Supreme Court Says No to Warrantless Cellphone Searches by Police
As you may have heard, this week the Supreme Court unanimously decided that police must obtain a warrant to search the cellphone of someone they arrest. What does this mean for comics fans and professionals? We’re glad you asked! First, a little background on the ruling. In two cases – Riley v. California and United Sta