Suzanne Shell
Encyclopedia
Donna Suzanne Shell is an American
activist critical of child protective services
.
Shell grew up in Minnesota
. Her first experience with child protective services occurred in 1974, when at age 17 she was punched in the face by her father. That year, she was put in a foster home and gave birth to a baby she gave up for adoption
. She became involved in dependency and neglect cases after Elbert County, Colorado
, took away one of her children in 1991 for an alleged spanking by his stepfather that she claimed "left no marks." The child was returned after four days with no further action. Since that time she has assisted other families facing court-ordered sanctions. Shell runs a website called Profane Justice and has also published a book by the same title.
In 2002, she told a reporter "I don't think they should ever terminate parental rights without proof that a child has been seriously hurt."
for ignoring a 2001 order to stop practicing law without a licence. In 2006 the citation was upheld by the Colorado Supreme Court, and Shell was fined $6,000.
In 2005, Shell filed suit on behalf of herself and April Fields in Colorado District Court against several officials connected with Child Protective Services. The case was dismissed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, and was a subject for her 2006 contempt citation by the state Supreme Court, as she was found to have attempted to represent Fields in the court without a license to practice law.
On December 12, 2005, Shell demanded Internet Archive
pay her $100,000 for archiving her website between 1999 and 2004. Internet Archive filed a declaratory judgment
Action in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
on January 20, 2006 seeking a judicial determination that Internet Archive did not violate Shell’s copyright
. Shell responded and brought a countersuit against Internet Archive
for archiving her site, which she alleges is in violation of her terms of service
. On February 13, 2007, a judge for the United States District Court for the District of Colorado
dismissed all counterclaims except breach of contract
. The Internet Archive did not move to dismiss copyright infringement
claims Shell asserted arising out of its copying activities. On April 25, 2007 Internet Archive and Shell jointly announced the settlement of their lawsuit. The Internet Archive said, "Internet Archive has no interest in including materials in the Wayback Machine of persons who do not wish to have their Web content archived. We recognize that Ms. Shell has a valid and enforceable copyright in her Web site and we regret that the inclusion of her Web site in the Wayback Machine resulted in this litigation. We are happy to have this case behind us." Shell stated, "I respect the historical value of Internet Archive's goal. I never intended to interfere with that goal nor cause it any harm."
On February 13, 2009, Shell filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Denver against 30 individuals and organizations. As of November 2011, the case is on-going, although approximately fifteen of the defendants have been dropped from the lawsuit.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
activist critical of child protective services
Child Protective Services
Child Protective Services is the name of a governmental agency in many states of the United States that responds to reports of child abuse or neglect. Some states use other names, often attempting to reflect more family-centered practices, such as "Department of Children & Family Services"...
.
Shell grew up in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. Her first experience with child protective services occurred in 1974, when at age 17 she was punched in the face by her father. That year, she was put in a foster home and gave birth to a baby she gave up for adoption
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
. She became involved in dependency and neglect cases after Elbert County, Colorado
Elbert County, Colorado
Elbert County is the 21st most populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county population was 19,872 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is Kiowa...
, took away one of her children in 1991 for an alleged spanking by his stepfather that she claimed "left no marks." The child was returned after four days with no further action. Since that time she has assisted other families facing court-ordered sanctions. Shell runs a website called Profane Justice and has also published a book by the same title.
In 2002, she told a reporter "I don't think they should ever terminate parental rights without proof that a child has been seriously hurt."
Legal cases
In March 2004, the Colorado Supreme Court cited Shell for contempt of courtContempt of court
Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...
for ignoring a 2001 order to stop practicing law without a licence. In 2006 the citation was upheld by the Colorado Supreme Court, and Shell was fined $6,000.
In 2005, Shell filed suit on behalf of herself and April Fields in Colorado District Court against several officials connected with Child Protective Services. The case was dismissed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, and was a subject for her 2006 contempt citation by the state Supreme Court, as she was found to have attempted to represent Fields in the court without a license to practice law.
On December 12, 2005, Shell demanded Internet Archive
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
pay her $100,000 for archiving her website between 1999 and 2004. Internet Archive filed a declaratory judgment
Declaratory judgment
A declaratory judgment is a judgment of a court in a civil case which declares the rights, duties, or obligations of one or more parties in a dispute. A declaratory judgment is legally binding, but it does not order any action by a party. In this way, the declaratory judgment is like an action to...
Action in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
United States District Court for the Northern District of California
The United States District Court for the Northern District of California is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San...
on January 20, 2006 seeking a judicial determination that Internet Archive did not violate Shell’s copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
. Shell responded and brought a countersuit against Internet Archive
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
for archiving her site, which she alleges is in violation of her terms of service
Terms of service
Terms of service are rules which one must agree to abide by in order to use a service. Unless in violation of consumer protection laws, such terms are usually legally binding...
. On February 13, 2007, a judge for the United States District Court for the District of Colorado
United States District Court for the District of Colorado
The United States District Court for the District of Colorado is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Colorado. The United States Congress organized Colorado as a single judicial district on June 26, 1876, by 19 Stat. 61...
dismissed all counterclaims except breach of contract
Breach of contract
Breach of contract is a legal cause of action in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other party's performance....
. The Internet Archive did not move to dismiss copyright infringement
Copyright infringement
Copyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
claims Shell asserted arising out of its copying activities. On April 25, 2007 Internet Archive and Shell jointly announced the settlement of their lawsuit. The Internet Archive said, "Internet Archive has no interest in including materials in the Wayback Machine of persons who do not wish to have their Web content archived. We recognize that Ms. Shell has a valid and enforceable copyright in her Web site and we regret that the inclusion of her Web site in the Wayback Machine resulted in this litigation. We are happy to have this case behind us." Shell stated, "I respect the historical value of Internet Archive's goal. I never intended to interfere with that goal nor cause it any harm."
On February 13, 2009, Shell filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Denver against 30 individuals and organizations. As of November 2011, the case is on-going, although approximately fifteen of the defendants have been dropped from the lawsuit.