crime is expensive

Shortly after we returned from Italy last April, the Guy went to the mailbox and checked any mail that got delivered while we were gone -- there shouldn't have been any, because we put a stop to our mail delivery while we were out of the country -- and found a summons there, a criminal indictment for several counts on downloading movies. To wit:

Count One: 18 U.S.C. 371 - Conspiracy to commit copyright infringement; Infringement by electronic means; Infringement by distributing a commercial distribution work, traffic in devices to circumvent a technological measure that protects a copyright work, circumvent a technological measure that protects a copyright work, and use audiovisual recording devices to make unauthorized copies of audiovisual works

Counts Two through Four: 17 USC 506(a)(1)(B), 18 USC 2319(c)(1) and 2 - Criminal copyright infringement by electronic means, and aiding and abetting;

Forefeiture allegations: 17 USC 506(b) and 509(a) - Criminal Forfeiture and Destruction

Penalty for USC 371:

* Maximum 5 years imprisonment;
* Maximum $250,000 or twice the value of the property involved in the transaction, whichever is greater;
* Maximum 3 years supervised release;
* Mandatory $100 special assessment.

Penalty for 17 USC 506(a)(1)(B), 18 USC 2319(d)(2) and 2:

* Maximum 3 years imprisonment
* Maximum $250,000 or twice the value of the property involved in the transaction, whichever is greater
* Maximum 2 years supervised release
* Mandatory $100 special assessment
* Forfeiture - ordered by the court.

This sort of sucked.

But not for me.

The indictment was for a previous tenant in the townhouse, one who no longer lived here. One who no longer had a forwarding address. One who apparently had a court date of 5/11/06 at 2 pm, and had no way of knowing this.

One who might well be on the run. I ran his name through google, and all that came up was the indictment. Well, shit. It looked like it was a pretty big one, too, though he according to the paperwork, he hadn't downloaded a lot. 15 movies, most of them crap. Poor, stupid bastard. Let me emphasize the Stupid. I would have returned it to sender, but it looked like it was hand-delivered, and so what the hell was I to do now? Call the court, I guess.

I rang around: to the DA's office, the San Francisco Marshal's office, and the San Jose Marshal's office, and explained the situation several times. They advised me not to worry about it. Now that they were informed, I suppose they're going to try to find him some other way.

When we went to the post office to pick up the mail that had been delivered while we were in Italy, the post office informed my husband that the public defender's office was looking for this same previous tenant. The Guy told them we had no idea where he was, and didn't have a forwarding address. They took back whatever mail it was that was waiting for said putz.

Man. I would not like to be this guy right now. Not at all.