Deposition Completed - DoctorScorecard Users Remain Anonymous

by Earl Thurston Email

06/16/10

Deposition

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The "Bill of Rights" (the first ten amendments to the US Constitution) were added by the authors of the Constitution not as an after-thought but for emphasis because they are fundamental to American law.

On June 15, 2010 I met with Dr. William Boothe's lawyer to give my deposition. Attorney Jason Coplin represented Boothe. Boothe "sued" DoctorScorecard seeking the identities of the people who wrote comments about him on this website. Some how Boothe was able to get a judge to approve a subpoena to take records from me. Boothe specifically wanted to know anything that would reveal the identities of the people that wrote comments about him.

I showed up to the deposition, taking no records with me, and refused to answer questions that would reveal the identities of Boothe's critics. The reason I gave was that the 1st amendment of the Constitution protects anonymous, free speech. My lawyer, Paul Levy of Public Citizen, counseled me on this defense and is prepared to litigate to protect the free speech of DoctorScorecard users. I am indebted to Mr. Levy and Public Citizen for their legal assistance for all of us.

I brought my own audio recorder and recorded the deposition, for my records. The deposition took about 3 hours and 15 minutes. I was fascinated by some of the questions asked by Boothe's lawyers, which gave me more insight into possible links to investigate. One question asked by Boothe's lawyer was about the company Yellow7. I have in fact received an email from that company regarding Boothe, but I was surprised that the lawyer even thought to ask about the relationship between Yellow7 and Dr. Boothe as I have never mentioned that company, as far as I remember, on this website.

Hackers Attack

Early this morning, an attack against the site was orchestrated with the apparent intent to slow down or crash this website, making the site unavailable to the public for much of the morning. The IP addresses used to attack the server included:

92.80.186.185 ROMANIA
93.70.2.6 ITALY
89.122.176.40 ROMANIA
79.119.33.115 ROMANIA

These IP's match Spammer/Hacker William Stanley's mode of operation. Stanley has ties to Romania, as documented in other posts within this blog. Stanley has been harassing this website for the past couple years.

What's Next?

Well, I'm not sure. I'll wait and see if Boothe will continue to litigate. Will keep this blog updated as I learn more.

Categories: News
Permalink06/16/10 03:50:13 pm, 2 comments »

2 comments

Comment from: caveatemptor [Visitor]
I think it's common knowledge that doctors can lose their license in one state and move to another and set up practice. If only doctors and veterinarians would realize that it is in their own best interest to do a better job of policing their own. In doing so, they would be protecting their patients and clients, instead of covering for each other when mistakes are made that result in loss of life or pain and suffering. If they did that, then sites like doctorscorecard would not be necessary. Kudos to you, Mr. Thurston, and your attorney, Mr Levy, for standing up for our Constitutional right to free speech. In an era when so few have the courage of their convictions, it's a breath of fresh air to know that there are still those who do.
06/17/10 @ 18:48
Comment from: dom [Visitor] · http://www.lasikdecision.com
CONGRATULATIONS Earl!

I again commend Paul Levy of Public Citizen for stepping up to the bat for the little guy. They're work is exemplary!

As for Boothe, big mistake! An 'eyesore' for his competitors for years, his ego will surely be his own downfall.
06/23/10 @ 11:37

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