Lady who fell in mall fountain while texting is suing after video goes viral | Golden Skate

Lady who fell in mall fountain while texting is suing after video goes viral

Johar

Medalist
Joined
Dec 16, 2003
She was bitter nobody came to help her or ask if she was okay, but then she also said she hoped nobody saw her fall in. What a contradiction.
 

merrywidow

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 20, 2004
There didn't seem to be many people around her & she didn't look as tho she needed any help getting out of the water. Her own fault.
 

sillylionlove

Medalist
Joined
Oct 27, 2006
This morning on Good Morning America they said that she had a nice long criminal record. Personally, I think it's funny!! She walked right into that fountain.
 

Johar

Medalist
Joined
Dec 16, 2003
I am sick of people playing the victim and then trying to profit off it. Fox News ripped a hole into her over it.
 

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Country
United-States
They would. But they wouldn't be right, IMO. If someone can take a picture of you making an *** of yourself, and then publishes it without your permission, then they deserve to pay you a piece of the profits, at the very least. It doesn't matter if you were stupid or did something wrong earlier in your life. If you read the posting agreement on youtube that you sign before they put ads on your vid, you signed that you had the permission of all the people in the vids, owned all rights to any music, etc. So I think the vid poster is caught dead to rights.
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
^ I don't agree. No one can tell from the video who the person is. If she did not want to be embarrassed all she had to do was nothing.

Instead she went on national TV and said, yup, that's me, don't I look like an idiot for not looking where I was going?

The other thing is, according to the television coverage she is suing the mall because "she might have been hurt and the security guard didn't help her."

I think the guard has an adequate reply, if she had been hurt I would have helped her. As it was, she required no help from mall security personnel.
 

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Country
United-States
I don't think she has a case against the mall; the case is against the youtuber, because they signed an agreement that they lied on. They did not have her agreement, and they said they did. The cause of action would be only partially for her embarassment; it would also be for a share of the profits. And in fact, the news outlets that ran this "story" also without her permission, relied on the youtuber to have had her agreement, and he didn't have it.

You are simply not allowed to put ordinary people on youtube or in the papers or on TV without their OK. That's why they give you a release to sign before they film you.

It doesn't matter whether you can tell who it is or not. No release, you're in doo doo-however the amount of damage in this case is debatable. She's certainly entitled to the ad proceeds of the viral video. Maybe triple them because of the lying on the youtube form.

Youtubers, being amateurs, often regard that check box as a formality, but it isn't. And they check it twice; once at upload, and once when ads are put on the vid.

Which is why I don't have ads on any of my skating videos ;)
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
actually the law is clear on this matter. if it's a public place, it doesn't matter, it's free use... I, as a photographer, do not need your permission ot publish or sell a photo of you in it if it's a public location. I would do it out of courtesy, but the law is on my side.

I have many photos of people from Iditarod and what not (not the mushers/handlers/partcipants just the onlookers) that I can publish without permission of any sort, teh same applies to stupid mall lady.
 

SeaniBu

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 19, 2006
actually the law is clear on this matter. if it's a public place, it doesn't matter, it's free use... I, as a photographer, do not need your permission ot publish or sell a photo of you in it if it's a public location. I would do it out of courtesy, but the law is on my side.

I have many photos of people from Iditarod and what not (not the mushers/handlers/partcipants just the onlookers) that I can publish without permission of any sort, teh same applies to stupid mall lady.
100%!!!!
And as MM said, I would never recognize her from that video, but if she wants to come forward and show the face of the stupid lady on a blurry video there must be some kind of "alterior motive" to coming forward.
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
...it would also be for a share of the profits.

That may put a different light on it. Like, you can't use a famous person's name or image to make money, even if you have the right to take that person's picture in public.

I wonder what the legal situation is in England where there is a cottage industry of sneaking up on celebrities and snapping unflattering and embarrassing pictures to sell to the tabloids.
 

Isk8NYC

Spectator
Joined
Jul 11, 2006
There's more to the story: she says on the video that she and the lawyer believe a security official allowed a friend to record it with his/her cell phone and that person uploaded it to YouTube. If she can prove that the video(s) came from the Mall's security video system, then she probably has a case for a lawsuit against the Mall. One of the camera angles (showing the escalator and the janitor) does look like security camera footage.

I agree that she should have just kept her mouth shut, but she says that she's a mall employee. The video was probably being passed via cell phones and she heard about it through the grapevine, which is why she called security and asked for them to be discreet. It was already too late. She was bound to be recognized, especially after interacting with a nearby store manager.
 

mousepotato

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 24, 2010
The mall must agree with her because the security guard who took the cell phone video form the monitor has since been fired....that is a big no-no!

I do think that lady was right in once sense...if that were an old person or a child who happen to lose their balance, would they not help? Would they still be laughing? Sure, she was texting and even admitted she was stupid but that doesn't mean she didn't get hurt and making sure she was okay should have been a priority to them. Not to mention the mess she created could have been a safety hazard to others.

Karma is a 'you know what'!!!!
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
That may put a different light on it. Like, you can't use a famous person's name or image to make money, even if you have the right to take that person's picture in public.

I can sell the photo as "just a photo", I can't use it on a billboard to sell my tablecloth business...
 
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