Be very careful when you generalize, guys....

Everyone in this thread...

Roadie's post was different in that he painted her in a criminal light without eveidence and THEN he also posted her personal contact info along with these false claims. I say "false claims" because he has no real proof of anything he posted in that post on that thread; just some things he found in a search which was conducted by you for really no reason that is valid. He is a 3rd party and it scares me to think I or anyone chances being violated just for posting a question. Just because he thought or it was of your opinion that Kareema was a crook, it does not make it so and he gave no hard evidence to prove you opinion was fact. He (Roadie) no doubt has some lurking fans here, both sane and insane. To post her contact info in the same thread/post where you literally defamed her or committed libel against her is in fact shaky ground or "thin ice" for you, Roadie.

Jim, your lawyer said that they can't sue (blah, blah, blah), however, anyone can sue anybody for anything. It is a matter of winning or actually getting the case admitted to the court. But in the process, people lose time and money, even the innocent ones and the ones who win the case.

Lesly, I would think carefully before letting rebel investigators post as regulars on your forum. the laws are not black an white and in this particular situation, had anything happened like a disgruntled FIB lurker goes and hacks up the person who had their privacy violated because he believed roadie in his assessment that the person was a crook, you can in fact be sued and found accountable in a court of law (along with roadie) regardless of the disclaimer on your site. Or, even if you lose the case, it may cost you an arm and a leg to defend yourself. Sure, you win, but the time and money spent could turn out to be a huge disaster for you and even your life, depending on how much you lose.

Remember, not all situations are created equal. This situation was much different than the general situation folks are throwing around here. Jim’s situation was not at all like this one so to compare them is simply not a valid argument.

Also, about not being anonymous, that is not correct either. If they use a bogus name and a free or even paid anonymous proxy server to post, you will have a very hard time finding out their identity. Heck, you would find it hard to find their identity if they did not use an anonymous proxy server as you cannot get contact info of the user with just an IP address unless you have proper clearance. And just because you THINK someone is a crook is not valid enough reason to get clearance to get the contact info from an ISP. They have to protect the privacy of their customers to a certain degree and they stick to it. Go ahead. Look up Kareema's IP, contact her ISP and tell them you need the contact info of the person using that IP. See how far you get.

Be careful. Not only as an internet surfer but also as an internet investigator like Roadie. He has laws he must abide by, too and I personally have seen him step his bounds, like in this situation.

And also, the thing about the "threats of lawsuit". Well, I saw no threatening on Kareema's part. She was simply stating her next steps. But you have to admit, thems is powerful words. I don't blame her for using those words, as she no doubt could have been scared out of her pants. Things could have escalated beyond the imaginable. Again, careful what you do, legal statements won't always make you immune in every situation.