Obviously, if the criminals were all rounded up,they had not been following the manual that allegedly provided the instruction on killing. Additionally, most hired hitman cases that sadly do succeed and those that do not(and often come to the attention of the authorities), books rarely are fingered as the culprit. Greed, lack of morals, hate, etc, are the main cause. People have been getting others to do their dirty work before literacy was invented.
With this case as a precedent as well as the stink about controversial online sites, we who post in the different forums and usenet groups should take note. Alot of the postings contain vented emotion, experience with gear and "tools", less than complimentary opinions directed against The Powers that Be and calls to action. People who would want to sue first, especially those who have been in some manner victimized by vile but penniless criminals, will want payback. Yes, these forums emphasize reasonable behavior and warn of the consequences of even lawful behavior, but there may be some people out there who could one day blame us as individuals or groups because a monster surfed through here and "learned about tactics". As the article below notes - "If you disseminate information with the intent to assist criminals, you can be held legally accountable."
Thus, information, not motivation and actions, are stigmatized.
Perhaps we should start focusing on those politicians, misinformed human service workers and attornies whose actions permit serial criminals to continue their activities after a slap on the wrist sentence. These individuals are, by depriving us of our rights and insuring that scum are spilled back into society, definately aiding and abiding criminal activity.
Jeff
Boulder publisher ends 'hit' manual
By The Denver Post
Staff and Wire Reports
May 22 - The Boulder publisher of a "hit-man'' manual agreed Friday to a multimilliondollar settlement with relatives of three people murdered in Maryland by a contract killer who allegedly relied upon the book.
As part of the settlement in Baltimore, Paladin Press also will stop selling "Hit Man: A Technical Manual for Independent Contractors.''
Paladin, which had planned to use the First Amendment as part of its defense, had received the support of numerous media organizations, and no lawsuit blaming an act of violence on a book had ever succeeded.
But several scholars and lawyers suggested that finding a sympathetic jury would have been difficult in the wake of the Columbine High School shootings.
Lawyers for Paladin said the decision to settle the federal civil case was made by the company's insurance carrier, which could not be reached for comment.
"I was prepared to try it,'' said Tom Kelley, a Denver media attorney who was co-counsel for Paladin. "However, Paladin's insurance carrier felt it was prudent to settle out of court.''
Kelley said he felt the company would have won the case if it had been tried.
The plaintiffs in the case, Kelley said, would have had to prove the publisher "intended to aid and abet criminal conduct,'' which he said Paladin did not.
"We were feeling reasonably comfortable that jurors could distinguish this case from Columbine,'' he said.
Publisher Peder C. Lund could not be reached.
According to both sides, Lund agreed to pay the families an amount described only as "millions'' of dollars, as well as to make contributions to two charities chosen by the plaintiffs and to turn over to them the remaining 700 copies of the book.
The breezy, 130-page book, written by an unidentified woman, includes descriptions of how to pick locks, how to torture someone into giving information, how to use various methods to kill someone, and how to dispose of a body.
"We accomplished what we set out to accomplish,'' said Howard L. Siegel, the attorney for the relatives, who live in Silver Spring, Md. "We are not interested in censorship. We are interested in sending a message that the legal system is now ready to hold anyone responsible and accountable when they deliberately set out to assist criminals.''
But Wendy S. Myers, president of the Society of Professional Journalists, said the outcome "will have a long-term, negative effect on the First Amendment, especially when it applies to books and Web sites.''
The lawsuit, which had been scheduled to go to trial Monday in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Md., stemmed from the 1993 slayings of Mildred Horn; her son, Trevor, 8; and the boy's nurse, Janice Saunders. Horn and Saunders were shot in the head at Mildred Horn's home. Trevor, a quadriplegic, died after his breathing tube was disconnected.
Lawrence T. Horn, Trevor's father and Mildred's ex-husband, received a sentence of life in prison in 1996 after he was found guilty of hiring James Edward Perry, a Detroit man, to carry out the slayings.
At Perry's trial, Montgomery County prosecutors introduced evidence that Perry had purchased "Hit Man'' and argued that he followed about two dozen of its tips, such as using a silencer and making the crime look as if it were a burglary gone bad.
Vivian Rice, a sister of Mildred Horn, and Michael Saunders, husband of Janice, joined by other relatives, alleged in their suit that the book "aided and abetted'' Perry, and that Paladin had marketed some of its books, including "Hit Man,'' to criminals and potential lawbreakers.
"I believe in the First Amendment; I support it,'' Rice said. "I just believe that these manuals should not be there when they serve as recipes for people to do things that are not right.''
[This message has been edited by Jffal (edited May 23, 1999).]
With this case as a precedent as well as the stink about controversial online sites, we who post in the different forums and usenet groups should take note. Alot of the postings contain vented emotion, experience with gear and "tools", less than complimentary opinions directed against The Powers that Be and calls to action. People who would want to sue first, especially those who have been in some manner victimized by vile but penniless criminals, will want payback. Yes, these forums emphasize reasonable behavior and warn of the consequences of even lawful behavior, but there may be some people out there who could one day blame us as individuals or groups because a monster surfed through here and "learned about tactics". As the article below notes - "If you disseminate information with the intent to assist criminals, you can be held legally accountable."
Thus, information, not motivation and actions, are stigmatized.
Perhaps we should start focusing on those politicians, misinformed human service workers and attornies whose actions permit serial criminals to continue their activities after a slap on the wrist sentence. These individuals are, by depriving us of our rights and insuring that scum are spilled back into society, definately aiding and abiding criminal activity.
Jeff
Boulder publisher ends 'hit' manual
By The Denver Post
Staff and Wire Reports
May 22 - The Boulder publisher of a "hit-man'' manual agreed Friday to a multimilliondollar settlement with relatives of three people murdered in Maryland by a contract killer who allegedly relied upon the book.
As part of the settlement in Baltimore, Paladin Press also will stop selling "Hit Man: A Technical Manual for Independent Contractors.''
Paladin, which had planned to use the First Amendment as part of its defense, had received the support of numerous media organizations, and no lawsuit blaming an act of violence on a book had ever succeeded.
But several scholars and lawyers suggested that finding a sympathetic jury would have been difficult in the wake of the Columbine High School shootings.
Lawyers for Paladin said the decision to settle the federal civil case was made by the company's insurance carrier, which could not be reached for comment.
"I was prepared to try it,'' said Tom Kelley, a Denver media attorney who was co-counsel for Paladin. "However, Paladin's insurance carrier felt it was prudent to settle out of court.''
Kelley said he felt the company would have won the case if it had been tried.
The plaintiffs in the case, Kelley said, would have had to prove the publisher "intended to aid and abet criminal conduct,'' which he said Paladin did not.
"We were feeling reasonably comfortable that jurors could distinguish this case from Columbine,'' he said.
Publisher Peder C. Lund could not be reached.
According to both sides, Lund agreed to pay the families an amount described only as "millions'' of dollars, as well as to make contributions to two charities chosen by the plaintiffs and to turn over to them the remaining 700 copies of the book.
The breezy, 130-page book, written by an unidentified woman, includes descriptions of how to pick locks, how to torture someone into giving information, how to use various methods to kill someone, and how to dispose of a body.
"We accomplished what we set out to accomplish,'' said Howard L. Siegel, the attorney for the relatives, who live in Silver Spring, Md. "We are not interested in censorship. We are interested in sending a message that the legal system is now ready to hold anyone responsible and accountable when they deliberately set out to assist criminals.''
But Wendy S. Myers, president of the Society of Professional Journalists, said the outcome "will have a long-term, negative effect on the First Amendment, especially when it applies to books and Web sites.''
The lawsuit, which had been scheduled to go to trial Monday in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Md., stemmed from the 1993 slayings of Mildred Horn; her son, Trevor, 8; and the boy's nurse, Janice Saunders. Horn and Saunders were shot in the head at Mildred Horn's home. Trevor, a quadriplegic, died after his breathing tube was disconnected.
Lawrence T. Horn, Trevor's father and Mildred's ex-husband, received a sentence of life in prison in 1996 after he was found guilty of hiring James Edward Perry, a Detroit man, to carry out the slayings.
At Perry's trial, Montgomery County prosecutors introduced evidence that Perry had purchased "Hit Man'' and argued that he followed about two dozen of its tips, such as using a silencer and making the crime look as if it were a burglary gone bad.
Vivian Rice, a sister of Mildred Horn, and Michael Saunders, husband of Janice, joined by other relatives, alleged in their suit that the book "aided and abetted'' Perry, and that Paladin had marketed some of its books, including "Hit Man,'' to criminals and potential lawbreakers.
"I believe in the First Amendment; I support it,'' Rice said. "I just believe that these manuals should not be there when they serve as recipes for people to do things that are not right.''
[This message has been edited by Jffal (edited May 23, 1999).]