Late last month, Michael Brown received notice that the recording industry was suing him in federal court for allegedly trading copyrighted music illegally on the Internet.
Brown, 56, sitting on his front porch in Clifton, says he didn’t do it. And for good reason.
“I can’t understand someone sitting 2 feet from me,” much less listen to music, said Brown, who describes himself as almost deaf.
After he was served with court papers, Brown’s 17-year-old daughter tearfully informed him she had shared the 889 files cited in the lawsuit with Internet users around the world, he said.
Now Brown faces a choice. Pay thousands of dollars for a lawyer to fight the charges. Or pay thousands of dollars to settle with the recording industry.
The self-employed engraver, who said he earned $13,410 from his business last year, can’t afford either.
But that hasn’t stopped record companies from seeking his money.
The Recording Industry Association of America, on behalf of several large record labels, has filed thousands of lawsuits in the past year against alleged file sharers for copyright infringement. At least 11 Kentuckians, including Brown, have been sued in U.S. District Court in Louisville since last year.
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