Leak Star Wars, Go To Jail 332
Shea O'Brien Foley, a former production assistant at LucasFilm, has been arrested on 13 counts of theft of Star Wars material from LucasFilm worth $450,000. The police investigation was launched after an early Attack of the Clones cut was leaked to and reviewed by Aint It Cool News in March, two months before it hit theaters. Other than the fact that Ain't It Cool News and Harry Knowles aren't being charged with anything, police aren't saying much. Apparently, Jedi mind tricks didn't work on the arresting officers. Update: 10/14 23:51 GMT by T : Michael Singer points to an article on internet.com with more depth.
The Force... (Score:2, Funny)
Jedi Mind Tricks (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Jedi Mind Tricks (Score:5, Funny)
Oh, but they CAN (Was Re:Jedi Mind Tricks) (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Jedi Mind Tricks (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Jedi Mind Tricks (Score:4, Funny)
See, thanks to EP1, it turns out that the force was all along a system of genetic advantage backed class superiority. Gone is the happy message of "work hard, do the right thing, and you will be honored".
Now, it's "hope you had the right parents, dirtbag"
Re:Jedi Mind Tricks (Score:4, Interesting)
So I guess that means that the Sith are going to kick the Jedis' ass simply due to sheer numbers...except that they limit their own numbers to two in the entire galaxy (a master an an apprentice. Guess that means they go out of their way to kill anyone else who has aspirations of becoming a Sith), unless the Jedi are simply deluding themselves about the Sith to make themselves feel better...
Looks to me like all these Force wielders are idiots. No wonder they've all but disappeared by the time of EP6...
Re:Jedi Mind Tricks (Score:5, Insightful)
Yes, the prequels sucked. Yes, the "midichlorian" thing was annoying because it replaces something that was comfortingly mystical: "I can feel the Force is strong in this one" with trek-like technobabble. "Oooh, his midichlorian count is off the scale!"
However, the idea that sensitivity to the Force ran in your family was pretty apparent throughout the first series. Even in the first Star Wars, you're left with the idea that Luke gets his ability in the Force from his father. It gets clearer towards the end of the trilogy. Think of Yoda's last words - "There is another Skywalker", or Luke talking to Leia in ROTJ: "The Force is strong in my family." All TPM did was take an idea that was already there (Force sensitivity runs in bloodlines) and over-explains it until it becomes dull.
Charles Miller
Re:Jedi Mind Tricks (Score:5, Funny)
"D'oh!"
Movie pirates (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Movie pirates (Score:5, Informative)
See TMD's copy of My Big Fat Greek Wedding (which had a counter running in the top corner of the screen the entire movie), or Signs which had a red line moving from top left to bottom right every so often. Other movies I have seen that were found on the Internet have long scrolling messages from the MPAA about reporting if you have purchased or found this release anywhere except an offical source...
I absolutely *refuse* to watch CAM versions of movies that have been put on the net. I would rather wait for the DiVX copy of the DVD or the screener.
Most of the problems occur internally, not at the theater. They are just being annoying.
Re:Movie pirates (Score:5, Funny)
Be ye steadfast in yar principles, video pirate. I tip me hat to ye, arr..
Re:Movie pirates (Score:5, Funny)
After he achieves that, he'll start working on making all production assistants robotic.
Waddaminute! (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Movie pirates (Score:2, Funny)
He'd better be careful going that far, however - if he's not careful, he'll make himself obselete?
No more movies like The Matrix - too much slandering of the computers!
Re:Movie pirates (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Movie pirates (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Movie pirates (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Movie pirates (Score:5, Interesting)
Normally honest people will steal when they think there is 0 chance of being caught.
People will steal the *stupidest* things just because they can.
People develop a sense of entitlement to what they are stealing.
The risk is almost never worth the item stolen.
I've seen people risk graduate degrees to steal reams of paper, risk a 200k job to steal 10k worth of stuff ...
Re:Movie pirates (Score:3, Funny)
"What the hell ever happened to someone just being a "crook"?
He had the tapes erased and he was President so they let him go.Re:Movie pirates (Score:5, Funny)
As opposed to wooden, like in AotC?
Re:Movie pirates (Score:2)
Ob. Jedi quip: "These are not the production droids you're looking for."
Re:Movie pirates (Score:3, Funny)
Right, but if he wants glowing reviews after the last Star Wars movie, he's going to have to make robotic film reviewers, too.
Stolen by Shea O'Brien Foley (Score:4, Funny)
Hmm. Reversing this, Im suddenly seeing the those Lucky Charms commercials as an analogy for the MPAA vs video pirates.
Well, it's only lawful (Score:4, Insightful)
I have no beef with after its release. People are going to see a movie for the effect whether they get a pirated version or not, in almost every case I know of (as far as) movie piracy.
We don't need no water
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:5, Informative)
This is illegal, of course. But how much damage did he do? The $450,000 figure is probably silly. I'd imagine that no money was actually lost. Anyone hard up enough to acquire the pirated good before release certainly went to watch it in theatre.
illegal is illegal
Hardly. There are levels of crimes. We don't punish traffic code violators like we do murderers. With no real damage, this is on the level of petty misdemeanor.
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:5, Informative)
Among the stolen items that were recovered, according to the affidavit:
? Nineteen CD-ROM discs containing the entire restricted library of sound effects
created during the past 25 years for use in the "Star Wars" films, with an
estimated "collectible value" of $95,000.
? More than 2,000 high-quality digital images from "Episode II," valued at
$125,000.
? Hundreds of video files of "Episode II," from concept shots to final clips,
valued at $100,000.
? About 113 storyboard images - or sketches outlining scenes from the film - with
handwritten notes by Lucas, valued at more than $100,000.
and
When threatened with dismissal, Foley admitted that he had taken photo images,
storyboards and a script for "Star Wars Episode I: Phantom Menace," but "nothing
big," according to the court document. He specifically denied having a copy of
"Episode II."
Foley said he was an "avid fan" and had taken the items for his "souvenir
collection" at his Petaluma home, according to the court document.
Foley agreed to allow Webb to look through the items at his home and when they
arrived at his Lakeville Circle townhouse the investigator saw "tons of 'Star
Wars' items," Webb said in the affidavit. Foley turned over numerous items,
including 25 CDs with images of the film, three videotapes of "Episode I"
voice-over tests, 115 storyboard image strips and a hard disk drive with
downloaded photo images.
He (or his mother, who lives in the Irvine residence cited below) also, perhaps, attempted to destroy evidence:
Authorities served a search warrant at the Irvine residence the next day, the
court document said, and found "Star Wars" production photos in a trash can, as
well as shredded documents that appeared to be "Star Wars" sketches.
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:2, Troll)
2,000 high-quality digital images -- value $0.00 they're just bytes
Hundreds of video files of "Episode II," from concept shots to final clips, valued at $100,000 -- value $0.00, they are talking about computer files, right?
About 113 storyboard images - or sketches outlining scenes from the film - with handwritten notes by Lucas, valued at more than $100,000 -- now this is hard to value. Were they digital or dead tree? Were these the only copies? Given the inflated claims for the other items, I'd be skeptical.
Total: $9.00
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:2)
You've missed the point.
A closer analogy would be taking a picture of the Mona Lisa and being charged with the theft of the physical painting. Fear of damaging the portrait with constant exposure to flash photography aside... is making a copy of an item akin to actually stealing the item?
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:2)
The damage to society done by stealing is easy enough to estimate. You steal a car, and you've stolen the value of the car from that person.
Now, is copyright infringement stealing? No, because the damage is on a fundamentally different order. If you copy a copyrighted work, and what is the damage? It's the amount of money that the copyright holder would have otherwise got if the violation had not taken place. This can be more than the cost of an individual copy, less, or even negative. Simply calling all copyright infringement stealing completely ducks the issue and creates a draconian legal system.
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:2)
Huh? We're modding this as Funny, right?
The damage to society done by stealing is easy enough to estimate. You steal a car, and you've stolen the value of the car from that person.
If you copy a copyrighted work, and what is the damage? It's the amount of money that the copyright holder would have otherwise got if the violation had not taken place.
Yes, it is easy to value an automobile and then assess damage as necessary. However, how do you value a person's lost time from work? Or time it takes to replace the car? Or the salary of the insurance company employee who processes the claim? Etc...
Are those "costs" valid? Or are they on a "fundamentally different order"?
Simply calling all copyright infringement stealing completely ducks the issue and creates a draconian legal system.
Ok, I'll bite... what issue?
I think most people would agree that stealing is stealing. Whether you take a
Punishment is a completely different story. Did this person steal $450,000 worth of materials? The court will decide.
I think a much juicier question is: did the website, which ran the early review, generate income from this "inside information"? If they did, isn't fair to say that they owe Mr Lucas a substantial portion of that income, considering it was Mr. Lucas' creative product that generated their income?
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:5, Insightful)
I find this to be an amazing concept. Tell me - how often are you a victom of theft? When the neighborhood thug looks at you a little too long - did he just steal from you? Are you affraid your employer may have to lay you off due to economic pressure... and thus steal your livelihood? Is the increase in political violence direct theft on your person?
Think you could get any form of law enforcement to make a case of these examples of theft?
I don't.
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:2)
If he did, in fact, cause so much damage to this project... why were people lining up to watch the thing at the theatres?
Re:Well, it's only lawful (Score:2, Informative)
I have no beef with after its release. People are going to see a movie for the effect whether they get a pirated version or not, in almost every case I know of (as far as) movie piracy.
Not to be a troll, but you do notice you contradict yourself, right?
OH HELL NO. (Score:4, Flamebait)
Re:OH HELL NO. (Score:5, Insightful)
I mean honestly, I didn't like the last Star Wars movie, so I have to be entitled to download burn this one to divx for compensation, right? It's only fair.
You nailed it, my friend. 99% of the movie, music, software pirates justify their actions with the "I deserve it" excuse.
"I have been a fan of Star Wars since I was 9, so I deserve to 'own' a copy before anyone else."
"I deserve lower prices at the box office, so I'll just download an illegal copy."
"I wasn't going to pay to see it in the theatre anyways, so I can download it because Lucas isn't losing money either way"
It burns me that some in the
Shout the praises of Linus when he releases something new for free.
And support people that pirate a movie like Star Wars... a movie funded SOLELY by George Lucas.
Review:
It's ok to pirate Microsoft, 'cause they're bad.
It's not ok to pirate Linux, 'cause they're good.
It's ok to pirate Star Wars, 'cause Mr. Lucas has enough money already (forget that he employs nearly 2000 people).
I love
Re:OH HELL NO. (Score:5, Interesting)
Punish the lawbreakers! (Score:5, Funny)
I need an mp3 copy of Black Sabbath Paranoid. Could you send me a copy?
thanks
spoiler! (Score:5, Funny)
Is there an issue here? (Score:5, Insightful)
If there wasn't, there are still some fairly blatant theft issues here.
Re:Is there an issue here? (Score:2)
13 accounts? (Score:5, Funny)
I wonder if he leaked the DVD also..... (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:I wonder if he leaked the DVD also..... (Score:2)
Re:I wonder if he leaked the DVD also..... (Score:2, Interesting)
Why is this a story? (Score:5, Interesting)
But then again, maybe that's the point. The near-mythological status of Lucas's space opera series seems to turn certain members of society (many of them well represented by people here) into dribbling fanboys whose rationality and good taste fly out of the window. What on Earth did this idiot stand to gain from doing this... it sure as hell doesn't look like he made any money out of it!
Is it really worth committing a crime so that you can then do nothing other than post it to people online? Either this guy is the biggest idiot I've seen in a long time, or his brains have been rotted by far too much Star Wars.
Re:Why is this a story? (Score:3, Insightful)
It's not worth money to leak it (how is any Warez item worth money when you leak it)?
It's just to do it.
Re:Why is this a story? (Score:2)
What about the 4 episodes of Sopranos, season four that were leaked to the Internet weeks before the season actually began?
HBO is supposedly more secretive about the upcoming episodes than anyone else.
One reason it's a story... (Score:2)
Re:Why is this a story? (Score:2)
Um, how many movies here on
Even the most trivial Star Wars information gets on here and gets 800 posts. "Lucas picks nose. Fans debate consequences." Kind of sad that this is what News for Nerds is.
Re:Why is this a story? (Score:3, Interesting)
chrisd
Re:Why is this a story? (Score:2)
Did it really hurt them/ (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Did it really hurt them/ (Score:5, Funny)
How to explain it to the other prisoners? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:How to explain it to the other prisoners? (Score:5, Funny)
He sits down, and the biggest, meanest, ugliest, nastiest father-raper of them all says, "Kid, what're ya in for?"
He says, "Leaking Star Wars II," and they all move away from him at the table, "and creating a nuisance." And they all move back and shake his hand, and had great time.
Apologies to Arlo Guthrie.
For more info.. (Score:5, Informative)
A quick Google search for the accused's name turned up a couple of meatier articles, including one that detailed stolen items found at his home.
http://siliconvalley.internet.com/news/print.ph
http://www.marinij.com/news/archive/Wednesday/s
Re:For more info.. (Score:3, Funny)
On the bright side, I guess it's cool that the Computer Forensics unit is part of the DMV. At the rate the DMV gets things done, no one will ever be arrested for p2p swapping...
The Fuzz must read Slashdot... (Score:2)
Insert Hand Motions Here: (Score:5, Funny)
"You may move along."
The original story.... (Score:4, Informative)
By Con Garretson
A former employee of Lucasfilm who has denied leaking a copy of "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones" to an Internet reviewer has been charged with 13 felony counts in connection with the theft of an estimated $450,000 worth of materials related to the blockbuster film.
The theft of sound effects, storyboard images, the film score and hundreds of digital images and video files occurred between September 2000 and April 2002, when Shea O'Brien Foley was employed as a production assistant at the Lucas Valley filmmaking company.
Foley, 30, moved back to his native Southern California earlier this year to work at NBC. He was arrested at his Burbank workplace at 10:10 a.m. yesterday by officers with the Department of Motor Vehicles' computer forensics and investigations office.
He was booked into Los Angeles County Jail and is being held in lieu of $200,000 bail on the warrant, which charges him with four counts of unlawful access to a computer system and nine counts of grand theft.
The case results from an internal company investigation launched after a review of the fifth installment of the "Star Wars" series appeared on the Internet Web site aint-it-cool-news.com on March 17, two months before its theatrical release on May 16.
Based on references in the review, Lucasfilm officials concluded the writer, Harry Knowles, had seen an early version of the film. Knowles did not return messages left yesterday. It became apparent that the source of the "bootleg copy" and other information about the film was coming from someone working at Skywalker Ranch, the multi-unit production complex owned by George Lucas, according to an arrest warrant affidavit filed by Marin Deputy District Attorney Paul Haakenson.
Foley quickly became a suspect because of information posted on "Star Wars"-related chat rooms under the name "Shay." At one such site, "Shay" placed a picture of Foley's winning costume - of character Boba Fett - from a Lucasfilm costume contest held around Halloween 2001, the court document said.
Legal paperwork in the case, filed Monday, has since been sealed by court order.
If convicted as charged, Foley would face a maximum prison sentence of seven years and four months, Haakenson said.
The prosecutor would not say whether any criminal charges are pending against Knowles.
The amount of actual loss to Lucasfilm could be in the millions of dollars, according to the court document.
Among the stolen items that were recovered, according to the affidavit:
-- Nineteen CD-ROM discs containing the entire restricted library of sound effects created during the past 25 years for use in the "Star Wars" films, with an estimated "collectible value" of $95,000.
-- More than 2,000 high-quality digital images from "Episode II," valued at $125,000.
-- Hundreds of video files of "Episode II," from concept shots to final clips, valued at $100,000.
-- About 113 storyboard images - or sketches outlining scenes from the film - with handwritten notes by Lucas, valued at more than $100,000.
Foley had worked at Lucasfilm as a production assistant for Todd Busch, the first assistant director for the company, who edited "Episode II."
"(Foley) maintained databases, knew production schedules and many intimate details concerning the film itself," according to the arrest warrant affidavit.
On April 2, Lucasfilm officials downloaded the hard drive of Foley's Apple G4 laptop computer while he was away from his work area. The downloading was done at the direction of Patrick Webb, a security consultant and private investigator working for Lucasfilm, under the terms of a non-disclosure agreement signed by
Foley, the court document said.
Webb and other Lucasfilm officials subsequently found files that Foley was not authorized to have, the affidavit said.
Foley was called in to see Webb and other company officials the next day.
He allowed them to access his laptop; however, most of the files at issue were no longer found on the computer.
According to the affidavit, Foley initially declined taking anything, but then acknowledged downloading some "clips" and the film soundtrack, which he said he no longer had.
When threatened with dismissal, Foley admitted that he had taken photo images, storyboards and a script for "Star Wars Episode I: Phantom Menace," but "nothing big," according to the court document. He specifically denied having a copy of "Episode II."
Foley said he was an "avid fan" and had taken the items for his "souvenir collection" at his Petaluma home, according to the court document.
Foley agreed to allow Webb to look through the items at his home and when they arrived at his Lakeville Circle townhouse the investigator saw "tons of 'Star Wars' items," Webb said in the affidavit. Foley turned over numerous items, including 25 CDs with images of the film, three videotapes of "Episode I" voice-over tests, 115 storyboard image strips and a hard disk drive with downloaded photo images.
On April 4, Rick McCallum, executive producer of "Episode II," viewed the CDs Webb received from Foley and determined they contained a large portion of the film.
"McCallum verified that (Foley) was not allowed to possess these, and the loss of control of these items represented a major loss to Lucasfilm," the court document said.
Foley met with Lucasfilm officials later in the day. He expressed no remorse, according to the affidavit, and was fired.
The next day, April 5, Webb called Dave Bettin, a Novato police sergeant who works as a supervisor with the Northern California Computer Crimes Task Force, which handles computer-related crimes in a 12-county area.
"These items were priceless because the film had not been released and the early release of these items would adversely impact the income of Lucasfilm," Webb told Bettin, according to the affidavit. "This is based on 'hold back' agreements that Lucasfilm had with several other companies."
Such business agreements cover the timeline of release of certain materials, such as the soundtrack, which was later sold in stores.
Webb told Bettin that other employees had observed Foley connect his laptop with Lucasfilm computer equipment but that no red flags were ever raised. Foley was not authorized to access what he did and had apparently used the password of someone else, the affidavit said.
Authorities served a search warrant at Foley's Petaluma home on April 18 and found more Lucasfilm property, according to the affidavit.
Foley's girlfriend told authorities that he had already moved most of his belongings to his mother's home in Irvine. She has an unlisted telephone number and could not be reached for comment.
Authorities served a search warrant at the Irvine residence the next day, the court document said, and found "Star Wars" production photos in a trash can, as well as shredded documents that appeared to be "Star Wars" sketches.
Later that day, authorities contacted Foley at an NBC studio, confiscated his laptop and questioned him with his consent.
Foley denied giving Knowles access to "Episode II," the court document said.
Foley, who also sells his artwork via the Internet, could not be reached for comment.
Lynne Hale, Lucasfilm spokeswoman, had no specific comment on the case, but said company officials appreciate the work done by the Northern California Computer Crimes Task Force and the Motion Picture Association of America, which assisted in the investigation.
Little sympathy (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Little sympathy (Score:3, Insightful)
It's worse than that, even. The person is accused not of making a copy of the movie, but of actually stealing physical material. Regardless of the varying views of intellectual property law found here, I think most
How do you calculate the damage? (Score:5, Funny)
Is it a certain a percentage of the revenues? I mean, if the movie had proved to be a complete flop and would have generated negative revenue for Lucas Film. Say minus $420 million dollars, should Lucas Film actually pay the ex-employer for stealing it :))
Re:How do you calculate the damage? (Score:5, Funny)
Nah, It was RLGN. Random Lawyer Generated Numbers. They take a number three times higher than the average guy not named Lucas can make in 4 years and go with that. Thought this was common knowledge?
Maybe if you read the article... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:How do you calculate the damage? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:How do you calculate the damage? (Score:3, Informative)
Among the stolen items that were recovered, according to the affidavit:
Nineteen CD-ROM discs containing the entire restricted library of sound effects created during the past 25 years for use in the "Star Wars" films, with an estimated "collectible value" of $95,000.
More than 2,000 high-quality digital images from "Episode II," valued at $125,000.
Hundreds of video files of "Episode II," from concept shots to final clips, valued at $100,000.
About 113 storyboard images - or sketches outlining scenes from the film - with handwritten notes by Lucas, valued at more than $100,000.
Why is this bad? (Score:3, Redundant)
- A.P.
Damages? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Damages? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Damages? (Score:2)
Now, if the employee signed an NDA, he could potentially be up against both criminal charges for theft and a civil suit for breach of contract, but only the former would involve the police & prosecuting attorneys.
Re:Damages? (Score:2)
and you can certainly argue that the earnings potential for the movie could be reduced in such events - as a bad review might deter people from seeing the shitty movies that Lucas is releasing under the Star Wars name these days.
Re:Damages? (Score:4, Informative)
No, this will not be prosecuted as a breach-of-contract. It will most likely be prosecuted as plain and simple grand theft. Lucasfilm will most likely not try to sue this guy for financial damages because this guy hardly has the money to be worth the suit.
What is more important to Lucasfilm is a publicized case to make folks think twice about lifting stuff from a film set (as happened very recently from the set of The Cat in the Hat film).
What drama! (Score:4, Funny)
And after he's found guilty, I wonder if he'll be thrown in some sort of pit containing some sort of monster and from which he couldn't possibly escape.
DMV Cops? (Score:5, Interesting)
The DMV cops? How do they figure in?
Maybe the real cops and the FBI didn't think there was a case to pursue?
Re:DMV Cops? (Score:5, Funny)
*ducks*
Related News (Score:2)
George Lucas (Score:4, Interesting)
i don't know whether that was exactly the right call, but i bet the guy doesn't serve much jail time. his name in hollywood is mud, so he'll probably go back to debuque or wherever and start a new career making indie films about black lesbians rediscovering the joy of lyme disease.
oh and another thing. i predict matt groening to be the next target of geek betrayal and disgust. we've all known and loved him for the simpsons, but when the movies come out, they are gonna suck, and no one will remember him fondly anymore, and they will invent their own simpsons mythos that makes more sense.
then george lucas and matt groening will have a beard staring contest, and the loser will have to shave it off on PBS during fund drive week. at least that's what i heard.
Erm, (Score:5, Interesting)
Of course, at $300 million, Attack of the Clones didn't pull in nearly as much money as The Phantom Menace, nor did it do as well as Spider-Man, itself a $450 million film, but consider this: TPM was more for children (not surprising in the long run, given that the lead character was a child), so kids went to go see it en masse, dragging parents along, for multiple showings. Box office gold. AOTC, what with its violence (Boba Fett picking up Jango's helmet and with the head falling out probably didn't make parents happy), lack of Jar-Jar (kids these days don't know who Yoda is), and love story, didn't make the kids want to go see it over and over again. Spider-Man, however, did. No surprise there. Plus don't forget that Spider-Man had the bizarre "luck" of being a movie about a superhero saving NYC in a post-9/11 world. The USA decided they liked that idea quite a bit (especially with the New Yorkers bonding on the bridge against the bad guy towards the end).
I personally think the reason AOTC didn't do as well as TPM was because it was the middle film. I walked out of there thinking "great - now I want to see the ending" (episode 3). My test of this theory will be how The Two Towers fares...
Re:Erm, (Score:2)
Re:Jango's head (Score:3, Interesting)
The other possibility, but I don't have a link to back it up, is that the shadows were only in some versions of the film. I read somewhere that Lucas continued to tinker with the film after its release and that, depending on when the date that the particular piece of celluloid was made, the film was that version. For example, if a theater got theirs a few months into the run or had to get a new version of the film, they got the "latest" version. This is why no one can agree on the exclusive scene for the digital version (the scene was included since there's less lead time on manufacturing - it was included in later celluloid prints, whatever it was) and part of the reason Lucas wanted the film to be a digitial exclusive - so he could issue "patches". We already know that the version of AOTC playing in hotel rooms has some differences (a few longer scenes) and given that the rumor is that there's been 50 slightly different versions of the film in theaters, it'll be interesting to see which one makes it to DVD.
Let's get this straight.... (Score:5, Funny)
Foley agreed to allow Webb to look through the items at his home and when they arrived at his Lakeville Circle townhouse the investigator saw "tons of 'Star Wars' items," Webb said in the affidavit. Foley turned over numerous items, including 25 CDs with images of the film, three videotapes of "Episode I" voice-over tests, 115 storyboard image strips and a hard disk drive with downloaded photo images.
Someone send a copy of this story to the RIAA and MPAA. THIS is stealing. Someone has been deprived of property! Throw the book at this clown.
Gotta run and see if maybe he put some of these sound effects on GNUtella before he got busted. I need a clean light-sabre
Keep Your Mouth Shut (Score:3, Interesting)
Seriously, what kind of socially-deprived moron would blow a job with Lucasarts by bragging about it on IRC? I hope he has Jedi mind powers to block out the force he will feel on his backside at Leavenworth.
Even worse (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Even worse (Score:2)
no one noticed the best part... (Score:2, Insightful)
Anyone care to tell me why the DMV has an office for computer forensics and investigations?
Ouch! (Score:5, Funny)
Actually they did work (Score:2)
I asked Harry Knowles about this... (Score:2, Informative)
"If they charged him, he was stealing stuff, but I've never heard nor met that guy." - Harry
"We've never heard of him." - Moriarty
If they are to believed, then this guy is unrelated to them. The fact that LucasFilm has not pressed charges only backs up that fact.
Oh, and by the way:
2002-10-09 19:48:17 Steal from George, go to jail (articles,starwars) (rejected)
Such hypocracy (Score:3, Funny)
Don't you mean 'Steal, go to jail'? (Score:2)
The only somewhat interesting question here is if the AIC news folks gave the guy up, which would have some interesting freedom of the press/protecting your source issues. (And you thought protecting the source was Linus' job)
On the plus side... (Score:2)
I sure as hell wouldn't trust this bozo behind a register at McD's after all.
if this guy is smart... (Score:3, Informative)
If this guy is smart, he'll get a good lawyer and sue his (former) employer LucasFilm for not warning him that taking home company items could be a crime. What with being arrested AND having to give the stuff back, the pain & suffering damages could be astronomical.
Remember, if you're a burglar and you fall through a skylight or electrocute yourself disarming the burglar alarm, you can get a big settlement!
The Cost of Collecting (Score:2)
Stealing is stealing.
I don't think Mr. Foley should spend any amount of time in a cell, however, probation, counseling, and LOTS of community service is definitely in order.
Such a lovely legal system (Score:5, Interesting)
Make millions as a CEO through deception and fraud destroying the financial lives of thousands and contributing to the collapse of the economy as a whole... you can go free.
Sell a relitivly harmless plant to someone to help them releave stress, go to jail.
Make billions by putting out drugs at prices that bankrupt people less they die... you can go free.
Unfounded allegations. (Score:5, Insightful)
The guy has a few copies of starwars production images and some audio effects on CDROM and they accuse him of theft. He's a production assistant, are you telling me this isn't commonplace? They all have this kind of stuff lying around. As for the storyboards, look at the memerobelia that regularly surfaces after years, that would otherwise have been thrown in the trash if some grip hadn't grabbed it. Not only do they have the gall to charge him with theft mind you, but grand theft! The guy's an ex-employee and has some images on a CDROM he didn't use and it's "grand" theft. He didn't deprive Lucasfilm of their use and he didn't use them illegally, they were just lying on his disk.
Lucasfilm you hypocrites, look at your own hard disks and 'souvenir' collections and then examine your conscience, if you have any.
Let this be a lesson to the reader, DON'T work for Lucasfilm, DON'T have anything to do with the assholes.
A fishing expedition fails to catch what they're looking for so they charge the guy for something many of them do.
Umm .. can you say 'FAN' (Score:5, Insightful)
I worked for games-workshop
I personally have FOUR jackets given to me by the company
The studio often passed out copies of rules for games that were not out yet
My point being, this kid worked for friggen STAR WARS. If he really was such a goober on this stuff
I work for Black & Decker now
SO lets get back to lucas. Some drafter is working on scenery
This guy thinkgs its kinda cute that the geek is drooling over a copy of this story board (that now has epoxy stuck to it) and makes his day by giving it to him.
Imagine, a REAL fan boy
Now is this going to be the case every time ? I don't know . but lets step back and look for a second. Its QUITE possible that all (or at least most) of the stuff this guy has
I mean, WHO wouldnt ??
Ian McCullen has the door knocker off of Bilbo's Door at Bags End. Why is it so hard to believe that this guy
Make the punishment fit the crime (Score:3, Funny)
Re:How is this figure determined? (Score:2)