Could this be the beginning of the end of SI in its current inadequately policed form?
biz.yahoo.com
Monday June 14, 1:24 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Hitsgalore.com Files $20 Million Lawsuit Against Internet Posters
RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 14, 1999-- Hitsgalore.com, Inc. (OTC BB:HITT - news) today announced that it has filed a Complaint against one identified and five anonymous Internet posters for Libel, Tortious Interference With Business Relations and Civil Conspiracy in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The Complaint, entitled Hitsgalore.com, Inc. v. Janice Shell, et al., Case No. 99-1387-CIV-T-26C, seeks damages in excess of Twenty Million Dollars ($20,000,000.00).
The Complaint names Janice Shell, John Doe No. 1 a/k/a ''Paul Kersey,'' John Doe No. 2 a/k/a ''Mayor,'' John Doe No. 3 a/k/a ''Mr. Pink,'' John Doe No. 4 a/k/a ''mshater,'' and John Doe Nos. 5-100 as Defendants (collectively the ''Defendants''). The Complaint alleges that, beginning at least as early as May 1999 and continuing through to the present, the Defendants intentionally and maliciously published and republished a variety of false and defamatory statements about Hitsgalore.com in a nationwide ''cybersmear'' campaign on electronic bulletin boards on the Internet maintained by Raging Bull, Inc. (''Raging Bull'') and Silicon Investor, Inc. (''Silicon Investor''). These statements either explicitly state or imply that Hitsgalore has engaged in illegitimate, illegal, dishonest, fraudulent, and criminal business operations, when, in truth and fact, the Defendants knew or should have known that such statements were false and libelous per se.
Steve Bradford, the CEO of Hitsgalore.com, believes that it is absolutely essential that all responsible parties be held fully accountable for their activities, and this action is the first formal step for Hitsgalore.com in taking the offensive against those seeking to destroy the reputation, damage the market value of the Company's common stock and undermine the business affairs of the Company through anonymous posting activity. Steve Bradford stated that: ''the Company intends to issue subpoenas to Raging Bull and Silicon Investor to ascertain the identities of the John Doe Defendants, and to aggressively undertake discovery in this case.'' The Company's attorneys are also investigating possible defamation charges against David Evans, a Bloomberg reporter, for certain negative news articles which the Company believes are misleading in nature.
Jeanette Wilcher, the Trustee of The Life Foundation Trust with whom the Company has various business relations, stated that: ''I applaud, commend, and fully support the efforts of Hitsgalore.com in bringing the anonymous Internet posters to justice.''
The Company would also like to gratefully acknowledge the substantial assistance it has received from various persons throughout the country in investigating the Internet activity by the Defendants and others, and welcomes further contact from individuals with knowledge of this cybersmear campaign.
If you have any information which you believe would be helpful to the Company in prosecuting this matter, please contact Carl F. Schoeppl, Esq., or Daniel J. Becka, Esq., at Schoeppl & Burke, P.A., the Company's litigation counsel, 4800 North Federal Highway, Suite 210-A, Boca Raton, Florida 33431-5176, Telephone: (561) 394-8301, Facsimile: (561) 393-6541, and E-Mail: Schoeppl@aol.com.
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