Ziggy
's DLDF Page at MIT
On April 7, 1994, David LaMacchia was indicted by the federal government on charges of ``conspiracy to commit wire fraud'' by creating an Internet electronic bulletin board. The case was dismissed by Massachusetts Federal District Court Judge D.J.Stearns on December 8, 1994, determining that the Wire Fraud Statute of 1954, under which David was being charged, was inapplicable because David was not even accused of having committed any criminal act.
Despite the dismissal, however, David and his family incurred extreme expenses for his legal defense. Legal test cases like this typically cost well over $100,000. Worse, he has no legal recourse to recover these expenses: the federal government does not allow citizens to sue federal prosecutors to recover damages resulting from their legal incompetence and malicious misconduct. So, even though he has received a moral victory, he and his family have suffered tremendous financial losses.
The Fund 's Web page provides information about the case (from original sources only) and instructions on how to make a donation. The Fund takes no position on the merits of either side's case.
I am proud to be a
contributor to this legal defense fund.
Even though the case was dismissed and no appeal to the dismissal was made by the federal prosecutors, David and his family still bear the financial scars of this unjust ordeal.