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This may be a solution to Giduck and other simular posers??
Lawsuit Newest Weapon against Fake SEALs
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March 20, 2012
Tampa Tribune|by Howard Altman
TAMPA -- A Tampa attorney on a crusade to expose those who pretend to be Navy SEALs is trying a novel approach: suing them for fraud.
Attorney Gene Odom filed the first of what he says could be multiple similar suits on Monday. The suit, filed in Hillsborough County circuit court, targets Barry "Bear" Silverman, who runs a business called Tactical Deterrence in Broward County. The business' "principal purpose is to offer training to customers seeking Navy SEAL instruction in weapons use and security deployment," according to the suit.
The suit was filed on behalf of retired SEAL Don Shipley, who runs Extreme SEAL Experience, which provides attendees with training similar to what SEALs experience during the Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training. Shipley's training center is based in Chesapeake, Va., with an adjunct office in Hillsborough County, according to the suit.
Shipley, a 24-year Navy veteran, spent 19 years as a SEAL before retiring in 2003 as a senior chief petty officer. The suit says his business is being harmed by men falsely claiming to be SEALs; it also claims Silverman is using the likeness of the SEAL Trident without permission.
"The number of new customers has decreased as a result of prospective customers associating the quality of plaintiff's business with the Defendant's illegitimate knockoff," the suit claims.
continued...
http://www.military.com/news/article/lawsuit-newest-weapon-against-fake-seals.html?ESRC=eb.nl
Mary over at POWNET has been keeping up with this one - pics of Silverman (who calls himself 'Bear' and uses 'shootinstructor' for his e-mail) and his false SEAL claims can be found at:
http://www.pownetwork.org/phonies/phonies562.htm
Richard :munchin
miclo18d
03-21-2012, 08:19
My wife said she saw this on TBO or Bay News 9 and I looked for it in both papers' websites here in Tampa, but I couldn't find it. She saw the headline but didn't get the details. Cool beans!
Team Sergeant
03-21-2012, 09:29
Not the first lawsuit for fraud. William G. Hillar is currently sitting in prison for wire fraud.
This case should be easy. The hard part is getting DA's and law enforcement to do their job and arrest these assholes for fraud in the first place.
craigepo
03-21-2012, 09:50
This is a really good idea. Many states have a law the same or similar to the Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices act. These statutes allow consumers (using the good or service for personal, family or home use) to file a civil case, and be awarded monetary damages, including attorney's fees(which can get pricey).
An enterprising attorney, such as the gentleman discussed above, could round up a bunch of consumer plaintiffs, and make some pretty good money.
I would be pretty worried if I were a poser and had just opened a "Seal/Special Forces/Ranger" firing range, dojo, or anything else as a for-profit entity.
Not the first lawsuit for fraud. William G. Hillar is currently sitting in prison for wire fraud.
This case should be easy. The hard part is getting DA's and law enforcement to do their job and arrest these assholes for fraud in the first place.
TS is right. Following the Giduck thread at SOCNET, he is as guilty, if not more so, than Hillar was of fraud. The trick is getting the duped LEAs to admit they were duped and file charges. I'm betting they won't.
DIYPatriot
03-21-2012, 10:35
I'll never understand people that do this and I hate to use that word, people. They aren't people to me. They're bottom feeding scum. As a civilian with strong ties and bonds to the military, it bothers the hell out of me to hear about cases like this.
The shocking part is that it is rampant and everywhere. Even in the outskirts of Memphis. I lived next door to a guy that claimed SEAL status, but never questioned it because he was a LEO, seemed to be a good and decent person and I never felt that it was in my place to question his claims.
When he began running for a small-town public office position, things heated up for him rather quickly. When it all went down, I no longer lived in his neighborhood. However, our BJJ school isn't too far from where he lived and years after he was busted he dropped in to train with us. He asked if we gave military discounts (of course we do). Apparently, he never truly learned his lesson because he wanted to know if we gave any extra perks or free classes to retired SEALs.
I wasn't there when he dropped in, but one of our former instructors asked for his credentials and all he could produce was an ID. That was enough, because his name was all over the place. Memphis is big, but not so big that a poser can hide. He was promptly told to leave.
His name is Myles Leifer and his info can be found here (may need to scroll down):
http://www.pownetwork.org/phonies/phonies1224.htm
News article:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/oct/31/tattoo-imprints-impedes-candidate/
I'm just blown away by how these guys continue to try and keep the scam going after they've been busted. Apparently, they're not getting enough punishment to keep them on the straight and narrow.
I'll never understand people that do this and I hate to use that word, people. I'm just blown away by how these guys continue to try and keep the scam going after they've been busted. Apparently, they're not getting enough punishment to keep them on the straight and narrow.
Psychosis
This is a really good idea. Many states have a law the same or similar to the Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices act. These statutes allow consumers (using the good or service for personal, family or home use) to file a civil case, and be awarded monetary damages, including attorney's fees(which can get pricey).
An enterprising attorney, such as the gentleman discussed above, could round up a bunch of consumer plaintiffs, and make some pretty good money.
I would be pretty worried if I were a poser and had just opened a "Seal/Special Forces/Ranger" firing range, dojo, or anything else as a for-profit entity.
My dojo, if I and my skills can't stand on their own merit, claiming I am something I am not isn't going to help, and it certainly wouldn't be of service to those who come to me seeking instruction. Especially if they may have to use some day the skills I am teaching.
Mustang Man
03-21-2012, 13:44
I had the honor of meeting Don Shipley at his course in virginia. He is one hell of a guy and will go through hell and back to expose the phonies. He has a database going all the way back to the UDT days in WW2 of who completed BUDS. He has bagged and tagged numerous fakes over the years. You can type in phony SEAL on on YouTube and watch his videos about the POS's he outed as fakes.
On an off note, Don runs the best course that I would recommend to anyone that loves to challenge themselves mentally and physically.
tom kelly
03-21-2012, 14:49
I believe that The U S Navy Special Warfare badge "The Gold Trident" like the U S Army parachute badge is classified as being in the public domain, & anybody can wear it. exception being that you are on active/reserve duty with the U S Military, if that is the case you would have to have been awarded the badge by compentent authority; AR670-1 for the army reg. Iam sure that the U S Navy has a similar set of regulations governing the wearing of badges and insigna. Since civilans are not subject to Military Regulations, at the present time they can wear military badges & insignia; under their 1st Admendant Rights. Exception to this is unauthorized wearing of the MOH. Since Iam not a lawyer with JAG or in private practice, or someone who is completely familar with updated Military Regulations eg. AR670-1 please correct me if this info is wrong....TK
This may be a solution to Giduck and other simular posers??
If the DA's won't do it, Civil Court is a great idea...its easier to win, many end up doing things during the process that'll put them in jail, and take all their stuff too!
:D