Protection From Abuse againdt a Blogspot Writer.

September 26, 2011 11:07 AM

I am a woman. A man I have a court-ordered PFA (Protection From Abuse) against started a blogspot.com page about me using MYNAME.blogspot.com to write viscous lies about me and my underage son. The blogspot page is, of course, the #1 result on google when googling my name. He is not impersonating me, but he is harassing me and my family. What can I do now?

I lost my job several months ago and recently found out “through the grapevine” that the impetus for my inclusion in the layoff was the discovery of this false screed dedicated to me on MYNAME.blogspot.com, which until now, I never knew existed.

I am a single mother who is now unemployed and have very little resources, and almost no money. He has made allegations against me and my young son in this 42 page tirade that are 100% untrue. I am concerned for the safety of my son and myself.

The economy not withstanding, I am sure (because one person I know at a business told me) that I am not getting calls back for employment applications because a simple google search produces this “drama” (as they put it) as the first result.

According to the blogspot help section, the say they will not remove the blog because he is not impersonating me, and they will only remove harassing blogs with a court order. I DO have a court ordered PFA but do not know how to get to google to show them that, indeed, this blog violates their terms of service and there is a court order preventing him from harassing me. How can I get it to them?

posted by anonymous to Computers & Internet (24 answers total)

Well, you can totally sue this dude for lost income, and probably get your job back.
posted by Jon_Evil at 11:12 AM on September 26, 2011

sorry, that should be "try and get your job back". But seriously, that's wrongful termination if I ever saw it. Though, IANAL
posted by Jon_Evil at 11:12 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

Go to the police. Hopefully there is someone there that will take on your case.
posted by k8t at 11:15 AM on September 26, 2011 [2 favorites]

Read your PFA order. Sounds to me like this guy violated it, though of course I'd need to see the order to say that for certain. Most of these orders tell you who to call if you think the order has been violated. Call that number. If not, just call the local cops and tell them what's going on. Actually, might be better to go over to the police station yourself to explain this in person.

Beyond that, it sounds like you have an actionable case of libel in the works here. Look in the phone book for local plaintiffs' attorneys and call one who advertises representation in libel/slander/defamation cases. The fact that you allegedly lost your job as a result of this is going to improve the potential value of your claim, which should make the plaintiff bar more interested.
posted by valkyryn at 11:17 AM on September 26, 2011 [7 favorites]

Along with whatever legal options you can figure out, you can try to push his page down the list of results. Open a Facebook account, LinkedIn, MySpace, etc. with your real name. You don't have to fill out a ton of information - just your name and birthdate are usually required. Buy YOURNAME.com (or have a friend do it for you). Start making comments on news stories using your real name. Basically, FLOOD the internet with your name. If you do enough, eventually the blogspot page may be able to be pushed to the second or third page of results - far enough that potential employers won't see it or won't care.
posted by coupdefoudre at 11:22 AM on September 26, 2011 [9 favorites]

Could you send the folks at blogspot a well written email explaining the situation? It certainly can't hurt.
posted by ian1977 at 11:26 AM on September 26, 2011

I'd go talk to the police first thing and see what if anything they can do about this.

But you probably also need a lawyer to deal with the internet company to get that blog shut down, and to also try to get your job back for you. I know you have no money, but lawyers are used to dealing with clients who have no money at the outset of the case and they'll work out a plan for you to pay them out of your settlement. See a lawyer right away.

For your current living expenses, you may have to look into social assistance programs.

And what a horrible situation, and a horrible man. I hope you and the cops and your lawyer decimate him financially and personally.
posted by orange swan at 11:26 AM on September 26, 2011

Isn't blogspot the in-house host for blogger? If so, you may try contacting Google (blogger's owner) for help. You can probably get the site shut down fairly quickly, then pursue a lawsuit/criminal charges.
posted by dzot at 11:26 AM on September 26, 2011

Here's what you do. Get a copy of the order, and a printout of the blog. Write a well-written letter to David C. Drummond requesting guidance on how to get this libellous material removed from the internet, as it is hosted by google.

Here's his contact info: http://pview.findlaw.com/view/3350629_1

Fax the letter. No ifs ands or buts.
His title is
David C. Drummond
Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and Chief Legal Officer
I'm not your lawyer and this is not legal advice.
posted by Ironmouth at 11:32 AM on September 26, 2011 [29 favorites]

Sorry attach the order and the blog copy to the letter. Go to a kinkos/fed ex if you must but fax it for sure.
posted by Ironmouth at 11:35 AM on September 26, 2011 [4 favorites]

Mod note: folks, this needs to not turn into a legal discussion about not-this-issue. Thanks
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 11:35 AM on September 26, 2011

You should talk to a person experienced with the law in your jurisdiction. I suggest calling a Domestic Violence shelter or hotline and/or a lawyer and seeing if they can help.

If you want to pursue legal action (I would) over this, you'll need to demonstrate that it is him as best you can.

Here is one way to do that.

If that doesn't pan you, you can ask the judge to issue a subpoena for the account. You can also ask for (but it may not matter) an order for google to suspend the account. In your shoes, I would ask for the judge to give me control of the blog, and replace it with a resume. This may or may not work all that well, depending on google and whatever, but I'd go for it anyway. Again, talk to a lawyer.


So, print the whole thing out. If there is profile information, get that, too. Call the police, and tell them there is a violation of the protective order. They'll send a squad over and take it from there. Be polite. Tell them you are frightened. Get a case number.

If you're lucky, the cops will arrest him. If not, file a motion of contempt of the order and a motion to modify the order (I recommend a lawyer), and let the judge have at them. How to do this varies by state and county, but it is totally doable.

One last thing - remember, don't do anything yourself to retaliate. Let the legal system work for you. Don't withhold visitation, don't send a "friend" to talk to him, don't do anything tit for tat. Keep your nose clean. The law moves slowly, but it does move.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 11:45 AM on September 26, 2011 [3 favorites]

Ironmouth's advice is great -- I would add: find David Drummond's phone number and follow-up with a call the day the fedex package is scheduled to arrive. Get your name in front of him. Be nice, sane and professional to the person who answers his phone. Refer to the fax, refer to the package, stress the legal order already in place, and that there is a minor child involved.
posted by thinkpiece at 11:46 AM on September 26, 2011 [2 favorites]

Minor child, ugh. A minor.
posted by thinkpiece at 11:50 AM on September 26, 2011

As you're flooding the internet with your name to push down the results (which was my first thought) of that blog, I know this goes without saying but keep your FB, Linked In, ownname.com as professional and drama free as possible. Those results should show someone that a company would want to hire - people will probably check out your FB no matter what, so work on getting that to counteract any image of drama and negativity. Post photos of you and your child doing wholesome things, etc. This is a good step for the interim, worth doing anyway because it's probably not going to hurt you, and it's some insurance in case this guy starts up again in some other way. I'd grab yourname.com, etc and also those on Wordpress.
posted by mrs. taters at 11:54 AM on September 26, 2011

INYL, TINLA, etc. What Ironmouth said. Keep your letter brief, factual and polite. The only facts you need recite in the letter have to do with the fact that the court issued the enclosed order on such and such a date and that the subject of the order had notice of it. Offer to provide a court-certified copy of the order on request (most courts will charge a small fee and will stamp a copy or otherwise mark it to show authenticity). If they can't or won't take down the blog or give you control of it, politely ask them to specify what else they need in order for them to do that. Write your letter with the full expectation that a judge is eventually going to be reading it.

Send by fax and also follow up with a snail-mail copy.

If they can't or won't cooperate, consider going back to court. These orders are usually interpreted strictly and it's possible his conduct may not violate it. If it doesn't, you should consider asking the court to modify the order to protect you against this sort of activity. It would be wise to consult in a skilled local attorney familiar with these kinds of orders, but who may also be interested in pursuing a libel case on behalf of you and your son. As part of such a case, you may be successful at getting a court order that will effectively stifle him. You might even be able to get it at the beginning of the case.

Good luck.
posted by Hylas at 12:09 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

Laaawyer. Talk to one, along with the cops. This definitely qualifies as something that is interfering with your daily life, and defamation isn't exactly legal.

I don't know what may come of it, but definitely discuss with the lawyer on getting a court order to take down that 'blog', making sure you can get the IP address/etc of the one who wrote it. For all you know, the sleazeball is having someone else help him, and then you can sue two people for trying to ruin your life.

I won't tell you to not let this sleazball get under your skin, but I will tell you to keep trying to find a job, don't stop being a good person. Don't fall for his shit in this, no matter how pissed off you get. Become best friends with that lawyer.
posted by Heretical at 12:10 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

Make sure you take screen shots of the google search results and the entire blog, print them out, save a copy to disc, and one to a flash drive .... Just make sure you document and keep several copies in different formats!
posted by jbenben at 12:31 PM on September 26, 2011 [9 favorites]

Keep your letter brief, factual and polite. The only facts you need recite in the letter have to do with the fact that the court issued the enclosed order on such and such a date and that the subject of the order had notice of it. Offer to provide a court-certified copy of the order on request (most courts will charge a small fee and will stamp a copy or otherwise mark it to show authenticity). If they can't or won't take down the blog or give you control of it, politely ask them to specify what else they need in order for them to do that. Write your letter with the full expectation that a judge is eventually going to be reading it.

This is spot-on. You are asking them for help, at this stage. If there is a legal fight to come, then you can do that much later. But here you are trying to get this done cooperatively with them.
posted by Ironmouth at 1:05 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

sorry, that should be "try and get your job back". But seriously, that's wrongful termination if I ever saw it. Though, IANAL

OP, I don't know how much luck you'll have with wrongful dismissal (suing the former employer) and doubt that any HR department would admit making any kind of a mistake. You mention the screed is partially about your son, but proving termination for family status would be a stretch. I am also NAL.
posted by a robot made out of meat at 1:32 PM on September 26, 2011

I really think you need to start with your order of protection rather than going to Google. The courts will not look kindly on this harassment, and there is a growing body of law that recognizes it -- rightly or wrongly -- as harassment subject to legal penalties.

Additionally, since this is not technically a crime, it is not subject to the high restrictions on what may or may not be libel. If it is not currently covered by the order of protection, you should be able to seek an amended order that will tell him to stop doing this.

IANAL but I think it is very important that you document this in the court record, regardless of outcome, because of his ongoing pattern of behavior.

Subsequent to any court action it should be a routine matter to get the material removed, but if you go in the other direction, you will have essentially let him get away with an escalation and no repercussions.
posted by dhartung at 2:00 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

Folks, when you ask a question like this, and when you answer it, you have to specify the jurisdiction. Given the phraseology, this may be Canada or some other non-U.S. venue.

It sounds like there may well be a violation of the court order, which can be punished as a contempt of the court. But it would take a lawyer from that jurisdiction to be able to say.

The OP probably had a lawyer when she got the order. That would be a good place to start.
posted by megatherium at 2:19 PM on September 26, 2011 [2 favorites]

Try this person at Google

Kate Hurowitz Google Inc. 1.650.930.3555 [e-mail]
Manager, Global Communications & Public Affairs at Google

I know how hard it is to get Google to respond, but she's an actual person. You might suggest that local press are very interested in your story--Google seems to react quickly to the threat of negative press. You have to leave a message at that number.
posted by Ideefixe at 3:02 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

If you go the PR route, make them aware that there is an internet community paying attention, usually with a link. Maybe a mod could chime in with pageview data.

As for starting with the court, I disagree. You can't get the goodwill back. A court order costs google lawyer fees. Try the easy way first. There's always time for litigation.
posted by Ironmouth at 9:05 PM on September 26, 2011