Thompson sues Florida Bar

Antigame activist lawyer sues state's legal regulatory association, saying they conspired against his rights as a citizen.

Jack Thompson is in court again after being tossed off an Alabama civil-court case against game-industry players, including the makers of Grand Theft Auto, but this time he's representing himself. Earlier this week, Thompson filed suit against the Florida Bar, of which he is a member, claiming the regulatory association has been conspiring against his rights as a citizen.

The North Country Gazette Web site is reporting that Thompson believes the Bar has been collaborating with opposing lawyers in his lawsuits over Grand Theft Auto and Howard Stern, encouraging them to file Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation (SLAPP) complaints against him for over a year and a half. In common legal lingo, a SLAPP complaint is a lawsuit that creates a chilling effect on free speech--it is intended solely to discourage a party from expressing a certain point of view by intimidation and the burden of legal costs associated with defending oneself against the complaint.

This is not the first time Thompson has sued the Florida Bar. He sued the group under the Civil Rights Act in 1990, but his complaint was dismissed with prejudice the next year. The case dragged into 1993 as the Florida Bar attempted to have a judge impose sanctions on Thompson, but their efforts fell short. The North Country Gazette reports that Thompson's complaint references his history with the Bar.

"In the early 1990s, for example, The Florida Bar, in league with pornographers and their attorneys, as well as with an operative of the American Civil Liberties Union, persuaded the Florida Supreme Court, ex parte, to enter an order mandating that Thompson must submit, without protest, to psychiatric and psychological tests administered by health care providers chosen by The Bar because of 'Thompson's alleged obsession against pornography which is so severe that he is disabled by that obsession and thus unfit to practice law,'" his complaint reads. "'Brain damage' was also alleged...The Bar's experts found that Thompson was suffering neither from brain damage nor from any mental illness, and that he was in fact simply pursuing his activist Christian faith in the public and legal arenas."

Thompson's complaint then says the Bar was made to pay him monetary damages as a result of the charges.

388 Comments

  • hart704

    Posted Aug 16, 2006 8:44 pm PT

    I have tons of M rated games. Come and arrest me too! Come on! I'm beggin' ya, Thompson! Make me famous!

  • soulreaper187

    Posted Apr 23, 2006 7:01 pm PT

    PROPS TRUTHOFME

  • Draco_Fire

    Posted Apr 20, 2006 12:36 pm PT

    Probably he was born stupid.. or maybe he was in a car crash... That will explain his as$h0l3ness. lol..

  • jimbo102671

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 5:00 pm PT

    This is typical bully-ism: He can dish it out but he can't take it.

    JT needs to shut his big mouth before it gets him in worse trouble.

  • remixmasta

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 3:07 pm PT

    this man has no life and i feel sorry for his wife and kids if hes got any....they probably died of embarassment anyways

  • rl_41

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 11:24 am PT

    I bet when he was a kid, his parents didn't buy him any video games, and all the other kids with video games made fun of him and beat him up, so now he has a hatred for gamers. Lets copy his style, and sue him for something random and barely remotely related to something he did!

  • Magicmaster-E

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 11:01 am PT

    lets not forget, anyone who represents himself has a fool for a lawyer.

  • notm3

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 10:59 am PT

    Just let this guy sue everyone he wants to. It takes his legitimacy to an absolute null. I think he should go play in traffic ... or go die in a fire

  • firefruze

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 10:56 am PT

    They really dont have a flattering picture of him..... but then again hes a scumbag so nevermind lol.

  • suckdings

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 10:45 am PT

    Careful 343TheFlood, Jack Thompson might take that as a written threat and totally sue you! But honestly, if there were ever a poster boy for the necessity for some people to be properly medicated, he would be that person. I wonder what the rest of his family thinks of him...

  • JediJon04

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 10:38 am PT

    Jack...come on. This is just getting ridiculous.

  • 343TheFlood

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 10:32 am PT

    [This message was deleted at the request of a moderator or administrator]

  • pantehre2

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 10:24 am PT

    He is the reason that religious political activists will never win. They need to find people who are not so "passionate" (aka kinda crazy) to handle the situation. I dont know about you guys but every religious activist that I have seen pushing for less violent games seemed like a wacko to me. I know there are good ones out there but I am not seeing them...... (not that I want less violent games... I like them just the way they are).

  • ringbling

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 10:23 am PT

    Jack Thompson really needs to be disbarred. I think that the legal system should decide that all of his claims and suits are a complete waste of time and money, both of which could be spent for actual legal processes. This man is not only an idiot, but IMO is absolutely insane. If anything comes of this, they need to do a rigorous psych evaluation on the guy, and if anything they should doctor the report, not only to get him out of our (gamers) hair, but out of game developer's and the justice systems hair.

  • tbolt_88

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 9:45 am PT

    he needs to learn to stop sueing..cuz he never wins

  • angelinkorn

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 9:41 am PT

    Oh, really? This guy needs a vacation for like, ALL OF HIS LIFE!!! Stop that.

  • Thanos_of_MW

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 8:45 am PT

    Thanks cdriccio

    It just bothers me when people become fanatics and can't see past their own limited views. Guys like Thompson are dangerous. Perhaps he is just a fanatic on a legal crusade right now, but if he gets too many legal doors slam shut in his face he might take it to the next level. He already owns a gun (for self-defense, as he claims) who knows what he would do if he is left with no other way to carry out his agenda.

  • Dottyspring

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 8:38 am PT

    Some1 need a visit frm the ''Don't sue people Panda....''

  • cdriccio

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 8:12 am PT

    Thanos...

    "He is not a real christian, he is a religious fanatic. Trying to impose HIS views qualify him as that. He is no better than Osama bin Laden. He may not be trying to bomb us, but he is trying to take away people's rights and impose his ideas, just like any other terrorist."

    I think that just may be the greatest quote in the history of language.

  • ElJefeDeMedios

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 8:09 am PT

    Can someone please make a series of Jack Thompson / GTA T-shirts .... he is just beggin' to be publicly ridiculed

  • Solidesnake2004

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 8:00 am PT

    My Response: Well...at least he didn't win the Rockstar case....shoot...what would the world be without violence? Also this man isn't even ready enough to be a "pro" lawyer...heck looks like hes not prepared for this Florida case....tisk tisk....people!

  • Higamason

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 7:59 am PT

    ...bgdrtser

  • Thanos_of_MW

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 7:55 am PT

    Foxhound, I agree. As a christian myself I feel he is giving us a bad name. He is not a real christian, he is a religious fanatic. Trying to impose HIS views qualify him as that. He is no better than Osama bin Laden. He may not be trying to bomb us, but he is trying to take away people's rights and impose his ideas, just like any other terrorist.

    If he doesn't like games, he should leave it at that. Maybe impose his views on his kids but no further than that. He is the kind of scumbag who wants people to do as he says, without regard for their free will and won't be happy until he gets away with it or gets put away (either locked up or "permanently banned" from life )

  • saiyanlarry

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 7:42 am PT

    I'll pay 1 million dollars to the first developer to include head villian "Tom Jackson", a sad, lonely, mastubatory man with nothing left to live for, who you get to brutally, maliciously murder and deface.

    WHEN this man goes to hell, he'll probably try sueing satan for encouraging voilent behavior. Then he'll try to sue God for letting him burn in the fiery depths. God is watching Jack closely, chuckling all the way, and when he finally does "get his", God is going to laugh his ass off.

  • dragonsama

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 7:23 am PT

    I don't know if I should laugh at him for this or feel sorry for his because he is such a pathetic loser.

    OK i was kidding about that last part.

    BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

    :::Breath::

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

  • foxhound421

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 7:09 am PT

    Jack Thompson has a right to his views and a right to state his views. as a Christian i can understand some of his arguments, although i don't necessarily agree with them. HOWEVER, where he's going wrong is trying to use the government to limit free will. we are endowed with free will so that we can make our own decisions and choices which, according to the Christian faith, we are ultimately judged on.

    in my opinion if you take away free will, like Thompson is trying to do, you take away one of the basic principles of Christianity and in essence work against God's design. if i interpret a game to have Satanic content that i think will effect my faith, then it is my personal choice and my right to aviod that game. Jack Thompson does not have right, nor moral authority to use the police power of the government to force that chioce on me.

    plus he's a douchebag.

  • el_fuzzo7

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 6:23 am PT

    Jack Thompson is retarded. He thinks he can sue everyone. He is like the kid on the playground, "Hey Jack! Your mom is fat!" "Oh yeah? WELL I'M SUEING YOU!" "Well I double sue you!" "I triple sue you!"

  • kx6593

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 5:13 am PT

    [This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

  • kx6593

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 5:11 am PT

    He's going to sue his mother one day.

  • Neonshadow2

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 4:06 am PT

    I can't help but feel a tiny bit sorry for the self destructive guy... but then I remembered that he deserves it.

  • menzflod

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 3:22 am PT

    He needs to get laid....

  • miiiguel

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 3:09 am PT

    Fundamentalist weirdo. You guys get all the funny characters..., we Europeans just have Berlusconi... .

  • MechaLash

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 1:59 am PT

    Wow just when I saw it all. This guy has no life what so ever. Its like "you say something to me? I'll see your ass in court. Someone put a end to this guys career.

  • EugeneE3RD

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 1:14 am PT

    Jack Thompsons needs to shut the hell up. He's nothing but a hypocrite, he complains when his right to free speech is theartened but he has no problem with taking away other people's right to free speech.

    And the letter that Thompson wrote about the kid who comitted suicide is very sick & demeaning. He insults the gamers & he insults the kid who committed suicide. Thompson even tries to use the fact that the victim was a gamer so that he can claim that the games caused the kid to kill themselves.

    Thompson needs to have his right to practice law banned in the USA. He is a nutcase.

  • jonsono

    Posted Apr 17, 2006 1:13 am PT

    imagine going to white castle with that guy...

  • Lasafrog

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 11:36 pm PT

    Truth, you spoke truth.

  • chickenoverlord

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 11:09 pm PT

    hahaha!! i love irony...
    hey u guys better all be careful what u say or little jack will sue u too!!!
    and his behaviour is christian? moral? yeah right

    slightly off topic... reminds me of a line from blade2 where there's a human lawyer guy working for the vampires:
    blade: you're human!
    human guy: barely... i'm a lawyer

  • Davidhalo18

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 11:04 pm PT

    Thompson..just I dont know anymore. He likes that anti-videogame and his name go together so well.

  • Lorifix

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 10:45 pm PT

    Wow... Issues...

  • shazanarkand

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 10:39 pm PT

    lol lets just send him World of Warcraft! he'll get addicted and get off the games lol. whos with me?

  • Fleet3000

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 10:09 pm PT

    w00t truth, w00t.

  • chimpilico

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 9:42 pm PT

    Word Truthofme. Well said.

  • Truthofme

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 9:39 pm PT

    Thompson needs to shut his mouth. He has no right to tell us we have created a culture of death, when a good deal of the Catholic Christian churches all around the world have killed 100,000's of people because of their religion. They are one of the most violent factions in the world. For instance, the Salem Witch Trials 1692, or the crusades, or the people who constantly lure gay men and women away in order to kill them. I myself am a Christian, but I no longer attend chruch on account of what it has become. A place of hate. And that is what he is saying we do. I know more gamers who are open minded, moraly correct people on the face of this planet. And it tears me apart inside to know that people like him go around telling us how wrong we are and how wrong a life we live. People like him create "cultures of death." I am gonna play games till I die. End of freaking story.

  • Ernice

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 9:28 pm PT

    i hope he loses his sanity soon, than we can just publish one last article about him and forget he ever existed

  • darkslider99

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 8:55 pm PT

    He honestly has mental problems...

  • elvato87

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 8:22 pm PT

    this guy is crazy and paranoic, why he is not in an mental asylum yet?

  • Fingerella69er

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 7:39 pm PT

    who cares about that guy he wont ever ban games the other side always wins they've been trying to do the same with rap since the N.W.A. days and look we still have gangster rap the same with violent tv shows.

  • Briantb_2008

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 7:07 pm PT

    One of the many people who have some power but are to stupid to use it correctly

  • killercortez88

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 6:53 pm PT

    paradyme777

    Someone needs to SLAPP him. Heh, that was lame I'm sorry.
    ___________________________________________________________

    what wrong with him? get rid of
    freedom of speech? Hey Jack how bout u drop this case already, Its been a year already lets let go of this case already. If he's agreeing to remove freedom of speech he going to turn America into Iraq, Say a bad thing about the president they come to ur house and shoot u. Freedom of speech makes this country great oh and paradyme777 that was clever

  • greatmagnus

    Posted Apr 16, 2006 6:49 pm PT

    I am pissed at this guy after reading page two of the reviews.

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