If you want to catch up:
To continue the story:
So Lasher tracked down my real host, and sent them a DMCA takedown notice. I was sent a notification, but since it went to an email address that I only check occasionally, I didn’t see it before the deadline, and my host blocked my WHOLE hosting package. I temporarily disabled the disputed content, as DMCA requires, and notified my host; after about 24 hours, they finally got my sites up. (That was the sudden disappearance of LBC, CoverCritics, etc. earlier this week.)
As the DMCA outlines, I also sent a counter-notice. If the originating party (Lasher) does not follow it up with legal paperwork, I am legally entitled to restore the disputed content.
Ah, but then: I get a message on Thursday from his secretary, or possibly one of his sock-puppets:
NOTICE TO CEASE HARASSMENT PURSUANT TO CRS 18-9-111
Mr. Shumate:
We did furnish a Mesa County Sheriff’s deputy with printouts of the posts on your malicious website that Mr. Lasher referenced.
“ADMIN: Oh, it’s on. – Lousy Book Covers and Admin Stuff – Lousy Book Covers”
You are advised to cease all harassment of Mr. Lasher. If your online harassment continues, we will take further action.Sincerely,
[redacted]
Wait — I’m harassing him?
My response:
Dear William, “Susan,” “Lulu,” and however many sock-puppets you own:
I think you’re a little confused. YOU harassed ME. You sent me insulting, threatening, and false unsolicited messages. Allow me to quote from your messages (all within the frame of an hour):
Hello: This has to be the most lame website I’ve ever seen and I can’t believe anyone is stupid enough to waste their time creating it.
Whoever you are, you’re a complete turkey and you can go fuck yourself with your trolling of the original Lorenzo Sperlonga artwork on my cyberpunk book,Unlawful Presence.FYI: Lorenzo did more covers for Heavy Metal magazine than any other artist in history.You’re a real bottom feeding asshole and you can eat shit with your asinine website.***You really are a fucking lowlife scumbag. Where do you live, anyway? Under a bridge in New Jersey?***Send me your name and address so I can sue you for defamation you fucking scum bubble.***I spent $2,000.00 hiring a world famous artist. Who in the fuck do you think you are with this pigeon-shit website shitlips?***You should reply to me, asshole. Your website is internet garbage and I would like to find out more about you.***You think insulting a world famous artist with your little commenter clones makes you cool or something? It makes you look like the lowlife fuck that you are. Why don’t you send me a reply, asshole.***You’re a bug splat on the internet windshield, asshole.Your website is a bad joke. Go ahead and send me a reply, you lowlife coward.***I got it, you’re a butt ugly green haired dyke with a snot covered nose ring. You get a thrill by degrading a world famous artist who has more money in his change jar than you’ve ever made in your pathetic life. Go ahead and send me a reply fuck face.***Comment: Go ahead and write back fuckface. My dog’s morning crap has more intelligence.***Sex sells on the internet, faggot. Snarky trolling is the Texas sized pile of garbage in the middle of the Pacific. You’ll never get anywhere in life and blaming successful people for your ineptitude won’t make it better.Go fuck yourself, moron.***
I had had no communication with you prior to this; furthermore, despite your accusations above, I had said absolutely nothing about you as a person or writer in my original post. (That changed, of course, once you had contacted me — then I had a very clear and very defensible opinion of your character.)So who, exactly, is harassing whom? Do you honestly think that, when comparing your messages to my response, YOU’LL be the injured party in the eyes of any judge or jury?
You can send anything you want to any sheriff you want. I’ve responded to your DMCA takedown notice with a counter-notice. If you want to file a lawsuit against me within the prescribed two-week time limit, go for it; the next communication I get should be from your attorney. Otherwise, take the L and pipe down.
Nathan Shumate
And how has Lasher responded?
With emails — again, all from different email addresses — showing my home contact info. And Google Street Views of my house. (All with abusive comments, of course.)
And I’ve gotten about two dozen calls from a “private number” this morning to my cellphone, all simply playing Sirius XM classical music. I stopped answering them and blocked unknown numbers, but they still go to my voicemail, filling it up with two minutes of classical music each time. I can’t prove that the calls are from William Lasher, of course, but I certainly question the timing.
This is not how rational adults behave. This has gotten into for-real harassment and cyberstalking.
All because I thought his book cover was silly a year ago.
So. Anyone know a good attorney who deals with online harassment?
I was wondering what happened. You should go to /r/legaladvice – they’d have a field day with this nutjob.
Well, for one thing–police. Seriously. While there is naught that they can do, realistically (jurisdiction issues and all that rot), you should prepare a written complaint and file it with them. If nothing else, it’ll give them something to go on, if they find your carcass. 😉 You may not be able to prove from whom those calls came–but the phone company can, and for proper LEOs, they will.
(I had something similar happen. Nearly 10 years ago now; a gentleman that was working with us (apparently) had either stopped taking his medicines, or something, He either stopped taking his meds and then sent us his ms, or after he sent it–something. Long story short, he decided that we’d “completely” changed his manuscript, his text (describing, by the way, how he was the Antichrist, not kidding) and he was going to drive across 3 states and kill us all. Long story short, the then-Sheriff apprehended him…here. Three states away from his place of residence.You don’t want to ignore this.)
So…given this nutty level of calling, harassing, and the tone of the emails, I would definitely do that. And yes, I fear you’re going to need to consult with a proper attorney with a specialty in cyberstalking and IP (Intellectual Property). Something is clearly wrong here. And if you’re getting sock-puppet emails…that seems to indicate an awareness that he needs to distance himself somehow (or he thinks that other “angry” emailers will get you to do what he wants, possibly…?). I’d take steps, Nathan.
Agreed Hitch and be safe, Nathan! How about hate speech too ? He definitely tossed around homophobic and racist terms. And I’m not a commenter clone, I’m a real commenter!!
I sure agree with the others! Don’t take this fruitcake lightly.
Pretty sure he’s following this, as a couple of comments have been downvoted for no reason.
But, yeah, Nathan, I would file a police report. I would also see if I can find out where Mr. Lasher lives and file a police report with his local PD. This is unhinged, not-rational behavior.
Some time at the range might also be apropos, assuming you’ve got the ammo for it.
How very helpful of him to let you know which sheriff’s office he gave the printouts to. According to my very helpful eBird “explore” page, the only “Mesa County” in the US is in Colorado. I would have thought there were more (Arizona? Nevada? New Mexico?), but nope.
Yep, the .38 is locked but loaded.
Nathan,
Western Colorado according to the author bio. At one time near Vail/BeaverCreek/Eagle Valley according to this article
Local author’s new sci-fi thriller is a romp to read. ‘Unlawful Presence’ rolls into the not-so-distant future | VailDaily.com
Maybe Hotchkiss CO according to amazon bio plus the linked in profile below. A quick White Pages search lists a william lasher as either living in, or having lived in Hotchkiss.
Bill Lasher – Hotchkiss, Colorado | Professional Profile | LinkedIn
Not active
Twitter: (1) Surreal Science Fiction (@dudeincolorado) / Twitter same author photo on amazon page, so likely the same person.
All of this public info, so you may have already come across it.
Yeah, he’s not exactly trying to be anonymous. I mean, neither am I, but I also don’t go in for the cyber-harassment thing.
Y’know, I keep chewing on that. Is it more, or less, worrisome, that he’s not trying to be anonymous and hide his residence, etc.? My guy, my 3-states-away dude didn’t, either. Not to say it’s the same, just…is it that he’s so certain he’s in the right that he doesn’t worry about it?
Hard to know.
I think that’s it. He’s so certain that HE’S the aggrieved party (I mean, he sent printouts to his own local sheriff!), that he can’t see how he could be held accountable.
Or couldn’t see, maybe. I haven’t had anything from him since yesterday morning. Maybe he realizes, finally, that he’s exceeded the limits of rationality. Who knows?
Well, all I can say is I’m glad you got in some range time recently (vis discussion on your other site).
My household shoots competitively, and I was trained in the military (yes, yes, when we rode Raptors to work, you wiseasses, along with Fred and Wilma, and defended the country against the Spanish in the Spanish-American War), so I was less worried than I should have been–but nonetheless, it’s a fraught thing, to think that someone you’ve never met loathes you so much that he might do you physical (or other) harm.
To borrow a phrase from Firefly, it’s creepifying.
Fingers crossed. Stay safe, mate.
A thrilling saga…
if this guy has two grand to drop on big tiddy art that he doesn’t actually own, he can probably afford a hack lawyer who knows he’s wrong, but assumes you can’t afford to fight back.
Watch your back, and keep all the incriminating evidence!