Jammie Thomas-Rasset Case Summary

1. Briefly discuss the specific circumstances of each person 's case.
Briana LaHara was twelve years old when she learned of a lawsuit filed against her by the Recording Industry Association of America. LaHara downloaded one thousand songs using a website that allowed file sharing, some examples of the music she downloaded were If You’re Happy and You Know It and the Family Matters theme song. Jammie Thomas-Rasset is a woman who was served a lawsuit, among four different record labels, for downloading twenty four songs through the website Kazaa which provides users with the tools to upload and download songs. Thomas-Rasset took the case to Supreme Court. Joel Tenenbaum had an RIAA lawsuit filed against him while he was a student at Boston University. He downloaded thirty songs between 1999 and 2007. Like Thomas-Rasset, Tenenbaum decided to fight against the lawsuit in Supreme Court.
2. Discuss the legal consequences of each particular case.
Brianna LaHara and her mother settled with the RIAA for a $2,000 fee and the promise that LaHara would apologize. According to the research I did on her case, it appears that this particular lawsuit led to a lot of bad press for the RIAA

Because these downloads tend to take place in the comfort of our own home, the ramifications and moral wrongdoings are not as apparent as stealing something from a store. Downloading music goes against the intention of the internet and presents dangers through others takin advantage of it. The internet was never meant to be used to commit crimes. Because of this sense of comfort, people are more likely to download multiple songs (as was the case with LaHara, Thomas-Rassett and Tenenbaum) and this hurts not just the artists but the crew who produce their music. The three cases discussed are important examples of the consequences that come with illegal music downloading and steps the RIAA is taking to help prevent such illegal