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Dispute Over Ownership of Social Media Accounts Lands Former Business Owner in Jail: eDiscovery Trends
I don’t get to cover a story very often that originates from my hometown paper, the Houston Chronicle, but here is an interesting story about a former gun store owner being jailed for refusing to turn over the passwords to the social media accounts that used to be associated with his business.
The story Federal judge refuses to free ex-Ka
ty gun store owner over Facebook password (written by Jayme Fraser) discusses Jeremy Alcede, who lost his Katy, Texas (which is just west of Houston) gun store (Tactical Firearms) in a bankruptcy proceeding last year. The store gained a national Internet following as Alcede posted photos of a curbside sign with acerbic attacks on President Barack Obama. The business has been restructured under Alcede’s former business partner, Steven Wilson, who hired John Boyert to manage it under a new name, Boyert Shooting Center.
In an April 3 ruling, Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Jeff Bohm ordered Alcede to turn over Facebook and Twitter passwords because he deemed the accounts and posts to be business assets. The 30-page opinion acknowledges that social media is new territory for courts, and the case has drawn national attention for its potential to shape future disputes about social media used for business.
Alcede refused and was jailed for contempt. He has been held since April 9 in solitary confinement for refusing to release the accounts. According to the order, while the Facebook page is currently titled “Jeremy Alcede Entrepreneur” and the Twitter account is currently titled “Jeremy Alcede” (with the handle “@jeremyalcede”), both accounts had previously been titled “Tactical Firearms” (with the Twitter account’s previous handle “@tacticalfirearm”).
According to an earlier Houston Chronicle article, attorney Leif Olson, who represents Alcede, says the ruling that the accounts are business assets is mistaken. Olson also says his client was willing to go to jail to prevent the government from silencing the views that Alcede has been presenting to some 11,000 followers via the Internet.
Even though Alcede stated last Friday he doesn’t “give a damn” about the accounts and that Boyert, who would manage the accounts should Alcede provide access to the account, said he’s questioned the true value of its followers and posts, both agreed the question of ownership was important enough to stand their ground.
Judge Bohm said Friday that he would not reconsider his opinion, that Alcede had waived his right to a state case on the ownership question and that he would not release Alcede on bond.
“He holds the key to his jail cell,” Bohm said, saying Alcede just needs to let the U.S. Marshals know he is ready to turn over the passwords and he can leave. “I don’t think I’m doing my job as a judge if I don’t enforce my own orders.”
So, what do you think? Should the fact that the accounts were originally associated with the business mean that they are business assets? Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.
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