New Jersey Sues YouTube Over Deadly Crash Footage

**johnnymk** · 05-27-2007, 03:48 PM

http://www.physorg.com/news99326515.html

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority is suing several video sites, including YouTube, for infringing on the copyright of car crash footage recorded on the turnpike

The footage in question was recorded by a NJTA video camera. The video depicts a car traveling southbound on the New Jersey Turnpike and crashing into the Great Egg Harbor toll plaza on May 10. The driver, a 52-year-old New Jersey resident, was killed.

The NJTA is also suing NextPoint LLC, the owner of video-sharing site break.com. The complaint names UK-based LiveLeak.com as a defendant as well, though according to LiveLeak the NJTA has voluntarily removed them from the lawsuit after they removed the video.

The NJTA is suing for direct copyright infringement by public performance, public display and reproduction, as well as inducement, contributory and vicarious copyright infringement.

"The video serves no worthwhile purpose and shows a tremendous lack of common human decency towards the family of the victim," the complaint reads. "Nevertheless, defendants have either refused or failed to remove the video from their Web sites."

According to the complaint, the NJTA requested the video's removal from YouTube upon learning of its existence. YouTube complied, but the video had already been copied by other users and remains on the site.

"YouTube did not try to prevent the very same video from being uploaded again by users immediately after it was purportedly removed," the complaint reads.

A Youtube spokesperson said the company removed the video "because it violated our terms of services. Because our removal also complied with our obligations under the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, we see no legal basis for a claim." Last month Google CEO Eric Schmidt said YouTube would soon launch an automated system that would help copyright holders detect and deter abuse.

LiveLeak removed the video after receiving a formal court request, according to co-founder Hayden Hewitt.

Hewitt said the lawsuit is guaranteed to bring more publicity to the video.

"To be honest I think it's kind of a strange situation," he said. "Usually you just file a nice, low level, discrete DMCA takedown...And usually these lawsuits are around entertainment video, where there's a financial stake. I don't understand it."

According to the complaint, the offending video has been viewed 19,833 times on YouTube, 189,037 times on LiveLeak.com and 6,933 times on break.com as of May 21. Less than 24 hours later, on May 22, the videos had been viewed 24,346 times, 213,295 times and 16,812 times, respectively.

The NJTA also is suing unnamed corporations and individuals who may have helped distribute the stolen video.

**thresher** · 05-27-2007, 07:03 PM

As an OSHA instructor and safety investigator I found the video very informative and actually helpful in understanding not only police behavior (a police vehicle happens upon the accident right after it happens) and also the human behavior of the other drivers (note the drivers in the left lane who actually continue as though nothing happened and nothing is going to make them late for/from work). Absolute value and completely the opposite of why the transit is demanding removal. I suspect morbid curiosity is there for a few as well, but this video does have its value.

**Thesifer** · 05-27-2007, 07:26 PM

Just more par for the course on stupid lawsuits in the US.

**Napoleon54** · 05-30-2007, 08:19 AM

A quick search of those three websites didn't find it. Anyone got|link?

**Jeffbx** · 05-30-2007, 09:56 AM

Here ya go - watch it before they yank it!

**cheapie** · 05-30-2007, 10:06 AM

dear God! how fast was that car going???

**johnnymk** · 05-30-2007, 11:30 AM

Originally Posted by cheapie

dear God! how fast was that car going???

I could be wrong in my observation:

It looks like he travelled 7 car lengths in a second which is over 100 feet/sec. That's approximately 70 MPH. Do people travel that fast through toll plazas?

It could have been 8 or more car lengths, which would mean 80-90 MPH.

**Maarchk** · 05-30-2007, 03:28 PM

That was fast and scary. It is sad to see people drive by it like its nothing. huge fire, people in trouble, naw i gotta go. I can't imagine obligations more important that human life.
If the cop had driven by, there would have been hell to pay.

**irwin** · 05-30-2007, 04:56 PM

Originally Posted by johnnymk

I could be wrong in my observation:

It looks like he travelled 7 car lengths in a second which is over 100 feet/sec. That's approximately 70 MPH. Do people travel that fast through toll plazas?

It could have been 8 or more car lengths, which would mean 80-90 MPH.

The dude apparently had a seizure 3 hours before the accident and may have had another behind the wheel at the time of the crash.

http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/05/26/1319205