Posted on 07/02/2003 7:15:51 PM PDT by sjersey
In May 1999, Michelle Padilla, her boyfriend, and their cronies headed for some R&R at California's Lake Havasu, one of the West's leading spring break/party havens. One afternoon, while Padilla--then a 23-year-old single mom--was chilling on the deck of a boat, she was greeted with the standard exhortation to, you know, "SHOW US YOUR T***." Padilla, understandably, responded by pulling down the top of her blue bikini and flashing the appreciative crowd. What she didn't know at the time was that her act was being filmed by a "Girls Gone Wild" crew. As a result, Padilla's breast flash has been included in a "Girls Gone Wild" video and DVD, and she can be seen on the firm's web site and in its pop-up advertising (in the photo of the DVD cover at right, Padilla can be seen with the words "All Real" superimposed on her chest). In a federal lawsuit filed last week--an excerpt of which you'll find below--Padilla charges that the "Girls Gone Wild" gang has invaded her privacy and, as a result, she is seeking an injunction barring further sale or distribution of the offending video and DVD. Lisa Cervantes, Padilla's lawyer, told TSG that her client is "not in the habit of doing things like that." She added that Padilla, now 27, has since married and is the stepmother of her husband's two sons, ages 14 and 11. The boys, Cervantes said, have heard "rumors" at school about their stepmom's "Girls Gone Wild" appearance. (5 pages)
In May 1999, Michelle Padilla, her boyfriend, and their cronies headed for some R&R at California's Lake Havasu, one of the West's leading spring break/party havens. One afternoon, while Padilla--then a 23-year-old single mom--was chilling on the deck of a boat, she was greeted with the standard exhortation to, you know, "SHOW US YOUR T***." Padilla, understandably, responded by pulling down the top of her blue bikini and flashing the appreciative crowd. What she didn't know at the time was that her act was being filmed by a "Girls Gone Wild" crew. As a result, Padilla's breast flash has been included in a "Girls Gone Wild" video and DVD, and she can be seen on the firm's web site and in its pop-up advertising (in the photo of the DVD cover at right, Padilla can be seen with the words "All Real" superimposed on her chest). In a federal lawsuit filed last week--an excerpt of which you'll find below--Padilla charges that the "Girls Gone Wild" gang has invaded her privacy and, as a result, she is seeking an injunction barring further sale or distribution of the offending video and DVD. Lisa Cervantes, Padilla's lawyer, told TSG that her client is "not in the habit of doing things like that." She added that Padilla, now 27, has since married and is the stepmother of her husband's two sons, ages 14 and 11. The boys, Cervantes said, have heard "rumors" at school about their stepmom's "Girls Gone Wild" appearance. (5 pages)
In May 1999, Michelle Padilla, her boyfriend, and their cronies headed for some R&R at California's Lake Havasu, one of the West's leading spring break/party havens. One afternoon, while Padilla--then a 23-year-old single mom--was chilling on the deck of a boat, she was greeted with the standard exhortation to, you know, "SHOW US YOUR T***." Padilla, understandably, responded by pulling down the top of her blue bikini and flashing the appreciative crowd. What she didn't know at the time was that her act was being filmed by a "Girls Gone Wild" crew. As a result, Padilla's breast flash has been included in a "Girls Gone Wild" video and DVD, and she can be seen on the firm's web site and in its pop-up advertising (in the photo of the DVD cover at right, Padilla can be seen with the words "All Real" superimposed on her chest). In a federal lawsuit filed last week--an excerpt of which you'll find below--Padilla charges that the "Girls Gone Wild" gang has invaded her privacy and, as a result, she is seeking an injunction barring further sale or distribution of the offending video and DVD. Lisa Cervantes, Padilla's lawyer, told TSG that her client is "not in the habit of doing things like that." She added that Padilla, now 27, has since married and is the stepmother of her husband's two sons, ages 14 and 11. The boys, Cervantes said, have heard "rumors" at school about their stepmom's "Girls Gone Wild" appearance. (5 pages)
In May 1999, Michelle Padilla, her boyfriend, and their cronies headed for some R&R at California's Lake Havasu, one of the West's leading spring break/party havens. One afternoon, while Padilla--then a 23-year-old single mom--was chilling on the deck of a boat, she was greeted with the standard exhortation to, you know, "SHOW US YOUR T***." Padilla, understandably, responded by pulling down the top of her blue bikini and flashing the appreciative crowd. What she didn't know at the time was that her act was being filmed by a "Girls Gone Wild" crew. As a result, Padilla's breast flash has been included in a "Girls Gone Wild" video and DVD, and she can be seen on the firm's web site and in its pop-up advertising (in the photo of the DVD cover at right, Padilla can be seen with the words "All Real" superimposed on her chest). In a federal lawsuit filed last week--an excerpt of which you'll find below--Padilla charges that the "Girls Gone Wild" gang has invaded her privacy and, as a result, she is seeking an injunction barring further sale or distribution of the offending video and DVD. Lisa Cervantes, Padilla's lawyer, told TSG that her client is "not in the habit of doing things like that." She added that Padilla, now 27, has since married and is the stepmother of her husband's two sons, ages 14 and 11. The boys, Cervantes said, have heard "rumors" at school about their stepmom's "Girls Gone Wild" appearance. (5 pages)
(Excerpt) Read more at thesmokinggun.com ...
If I'm wrong, please correct me.
I believe the GGW series is a "documentary."
SD
She got what she deserved. I do think, however, they should have to renumerate her for the use of her image without her permission, but it's not an invasion of her privacy at all.
And, "boys, it is not accepted normal behavior...if you asked me to show you my t*ts, I'd deck you!
HBO does those "Taxicab confessions" show. They get releases signed cause they are using hidden cameras and the "victims" (participants) have an expectation of privacy when talking with a taxi driver inside of a car.
A woman who lifts her shirt in public has no expectation of privacy. One who sees a camera and still does so has even less of a claim to having her privacy invaded.
SD
So now documentary filmmakers have no right to profit from their work? I find that hard to believe.
SD
Seriously, it is a glimpse into the party world of Mardi Gras and Spring Break and such which literally documents the activities.
SD
Absolutely. I don't think much of GGW is scripted and staged.
I am being somewhat facetious in calling it a "documentary," but that is in essence what it is. I think someone who voluntarily posed and is on any of these films has no recourse. But using a person's image for advertising or such promotional work should be under license.
There's a fair compromise, dont'tcha think?
SD
Is she embarassed to be a 23 y/o single mom? Is she embarassed to (probably) receive WIC, AFDC, subsidized housing and daycare, Medicaid? Yeah, I'm making assumptions there, but so what?
Very fair! I have no pity for the rest of the girls, but that one is being used for promotional purposes...and I really have no pity for her, other than that she should be renumerated for her "work" as a "model".
As to the "damages"....hunny, don't flash people in a largely public place and then cry foul. If I flased someone in a public place, I'd fully accept the consequences of my actions.
I am not agreeing with what she did, but that doesn't mean that she was a "white trash welfare mom"....being born & raised in Southern California and going to Havasu on many a spring break & summer time, I saw very wealthy spoiled rotten rich kids do things far worse than that. And I saw a few of those same kids later (after high school) as "single parents" mooching off their wealthy parents (and the parents probably deserved the leeching).
Let's not be liberals and judge what isn't there...judge only what we do know...she was sleezy in the act of flashing a large group of people on public lake, which she now regrets (probably only in that she didn't get paid for it and she sees how much money GGW is making) and she now wants a cut of the pie. As for any more, we don't have enough facts to pass judgement...for all we know she could be a young widow.
Dude, don't think about your mom like that....
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