IRVINE, CA--(Marketwire - Dec 20, 2011) - Thinking Liberally Media, owner of TheLiberalOC.com, the leading progressive political blog in Orange County, and Madison Alexander PR, an Irvine-based technology public relations firm, today announced that a federal judge has ruled in their favor in a lawsuit charging Art Pedroza and the Orange Juice Blog related to cybersquatting, trademark and copyright infringement.
Judge David Carter issued a minute ruling for summary judgment on Thursday, December 15, 2011 and awarded the plaintiffs damages in the amount of $30,000 against Mr. Pedroza. These damages are on top of a November 2010 judgment of $17,000 against the Orange Juice Blog itself and approximately $8,000 in unpaid sanctions against Mr. Pedroza for failing to follow multiple court orders.
In November 2009, Mr. Pedroza and the Orange Juice Blog illegally acquired Web domain names related to Thinking Liberally Media web properties, Madison Alexander PR and others associated with TheLiberalOC.com blog. Mr. Pedroza demanded thousands of dollars for the illegally acquired domains. When the plaintiffs refused, Mr. Pedroza routed the domains to gay pornography, and the North American Man Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) website. When his actions were publicized, Mr. Pedroza then routed the web domains to other undesirable websites to attempt to damage the personal and professional reputations of the plaintiffs. According to court filings, Mr. Pedroza claimed the redirects to gay porn and NAMBLA were parody.
"We are delighted with the judge's decision and the awarded damages have exceeded our expectations," said Chris Prevatt, publisher, Thinking Liberally Media. "Mr. Pedroza's actions were reprehensible and disgusting. We are pleased the court agreed. We'd like to acknowledge the fantastic work of our lawyer, Todd Gallinger, of Gallinger Law in Irvine, who did a masterful job in advising us and guiding us."
About Thinking Liberally Media
Based in Irvine, Thinking Liberally Media, Inc. owns and operates The Liberal OC, the Orange County Press Club's 2010 "Best Political Blog." TheLiberalOC was also named the Best Liberal Blog by Orange Coast Magazine in 2008.
About Madison Alexander PR
Based in Irvine, Madison Alexander Public Relations serves technology companies from start-ups to large organizations with senior communications strategic counsel and results-driven, hand-on public relations and social media services. The agency has won three national technology PR awards in the past 18 months. More information on Madison Alexander PR can be found at www.madisonalexanderpr.com.
Contact Information:
Media Contact:
Dan Chmielewski for TheLiberalOC
714-832-8716 or 949-231-2965