Dave Ames and Harlequin Property file legal papers against Barbados Free Press readers

Hi folks,

A few weeks ago we informed our readers that Harlequin had served our webhost WordPress – Automattic Inc with a court subpoena concerning reader comments on Barbados Free Press. Ames and Harlequin want to discover the identities of BFP readers who left anonymous comments on stories about them.

This will be difficult even if WordPress turns over the ip numbers to Harlequin because further steps are required with internet suppliers in other countries. Lots of folks use proxies and protection like ‘Anonymouse.org‘ for surfing too. Nope, we’re not worried at all and we run this here little blog. Have for nine years and the DLP and BLP haven’t found us yet!

WordPress didn’t send copies of the legal papers to us, so we presume they are fighting it out in court with Harlequin and David Ames. WordPress inventor Matt Mullenweg has a reputation as a hell of a scrapper when it comes to defending free speech and he’ll spend millions rather than give into extortion. (Matt is the handsome young chap above, just turned 30. And ladies, not only is he single – his business costs about $400,000 a month to run, but takes in gross revenues of $45 million a year. You do the math. The latest Business Insider issue says Matt is probably worth a billion yankee dollars and he has homes in New York, California and Texas. He was in Barbados a few months ago – I’ll try and find the photos I saw on the web.) 

Today we received more legal papers – unofficially and anonymously – from someone. This batch lists exactly what comments and BFP readers that Ames and Harlequin is after.

We’re not worried because we know that the WordPress business model would collapse overnight if Matt and the boys didn’t defend free speech.

Besides – we believe in Matt and WP crew. They will fight this attack all the way on a purely ideological basis – nevermind anything else.

Meanwhile here are the two batches of documents so far…

Latest – 04447212-Page0-41(1)

Previous – 2014_04_21_19_26_39

Harlequin – Dave Ames serves WordPress with court subpoena about Barbados Free Press

UPDATED April 30, 2014: PDF of Court Document Posted Below

Harlequin / Ames alleges defamation by commenters?

Dear Barbados Free Press readers,

Here is what we know so far…

Today some anonymous person posted the following as a comment on Barbados Free Press.

IF the posting is for true, then Harlequin, David Ames and Carol Ames served some court papers on Automattic Inc. (otherwise known as WordPress) in San Francisco USA, demanding that WordPress produce the IP numbers and email addresses for persons who posted some comments about Harlequin on Barbados Free Press. According to the court papers, it is not BFP who is being served or sued, but our internet host WordPress.com.

We at BFP have not looked at the comments, but they are listed in the court papers printed below. It looks to us like what was posted as a comment contains errors of the type that come when a paper page is scanned and converted to a Word file.

We expect that WordPress will vigorously defend free speech – because, aside from free speech and human rights, if they don’t defend free speech, their business model collapses.

PDF of Court Document: Harlequin Court Document 2014_04_21

Here is what was originally posted as a comment on BFP…

Submitted on 2014/04/29 at 10:03 pm

The following is the Ames application for the IP addresses of those posters Ames feels may have defamed him,

SUBP-002
ATTORNEY OR PARTY WITHOUT ATTORNEY (Name, State Bar number, and address):
Timothy B. Broderick (97082), Katrina M. Saleen (253706)
Broderick Saleen, 2600 El Camino Real, Ste. 506, Palo Alto, CA 94306
TELEPHONE NO.: (650) 857 9000 FAX NO.: (650) 857 1100
E-MAIL ADDRESS:
ATTORNEY FOR (Name): Dave Ames: Carol Ames• Harlequin FOR COURT USE ONLY