Stop, Drop and Roll

23 April 2007 | Alameda Community | John Knox White

Email is great, it allows us to communicate easily on our own schedule, keep in touch. The informality of it allows us to dash off a quick note with no need to finish your thoughts, hit the highlights and move on.

My recent court travails have highlighted an issue for me, one that I’m often aware of, but that I still manage not to abide by. That’s the permanence and the ease of sharing that email brings with it. Call up a friend and say someone’s a “dolt” and your friend might snicker, agree, etc. But the same comment in an email can quickly leave your control and end up in court.

Take for example the defamation lawsuit I’m involved in. Last Wednesday, I was handed an email by the the plaintiff in the case. it was written by a person I’ve never met, had received two phone messages from, one saying I’m his nemesis, the other yelling at my about an issue he hadn’t looked into and had things backwards. He appears to be following through with the whole nemesis thread. He’s yelled at me for ruining Alameda for him, posted on his blog blaming me (and the transportation commission) for decisions we didn’t make. It’s all pretty amusing.

The email ([Removed see note below]) I received was hilarious. It starts off referring to Laurendo.com as a “Snarkfest” and then goes on to say without irony that:

• Lauren Do fits the bill as Alameda’s “Ann Coulter”
• I am an ” idiotic world-improver-wanta-be” (Nothing worse than those morons trying to improve the world.
• The City Council is ” your typical small town crooked politics, probably just being run from next door at the Elk.” (managing to impugn the Elks as well, major bonus points).

My guess is that XXXXX [see note below], who’s own website appears to be the same snarkfest he accuses others of being, didn’t expect his email to show up in court. There are two important lessons here. First, email to a third party can be considered libel. (of course you’d have to actually libel someone), and second, it can easily flow out of your control and end up places you don’t want it to.

NOTE: Post changed, I received a phone conversation from the email writer who was unaware his email had been included in the court documents and was exceedingly apologetic for his tone. I have removed the email (though he did not request it) out of respect for his reaching out. Dialogue in Alameda could use a bit more peace.