Lawyer wants company to install controls on all devices
Apple has seen its Cheap Nike Shoes share of litigation, but this may be the most interesting suit yet.
Chris Sevier, 36 a Nashville lawyer and model, wants “all [of Apple’s] devices,” including the iPhone, sold “in ‘safe mode,’ with software preset to filter out pornographic content.”
Sevier’s trail of tears began when he bought a MacBook Pro, which came with the web browser Safari already installed. Sevier “accidentally misspelled ‘,’” according to the complaint, “which lead [sic] him to ‘fuc[*]book.com’ and a host of websites that caused him to see pornographic images that appealed to his biological sensibilities as a male and lead [sic] to an unwanted addiction with adverse consequences.”
Sevier admits in the complaint that he “ loves Apple … and knows that it has good intent,” and is certain that the company is “concerned with the welfare of our Nation’s children, while furthering pro-American values.”
Nevertheless, Sevier wants Apple to “set the example for all device makers” and equip all of its devices with strict controls on access to porn, requiring the user to “take proactive steps to block pornographic images.”
“Apple is hijacking great sex”
Among the reasons Sevier gives for his request are “patriotism” (“American [sic] is in many respect [sic] a lighthouse for the rest of the world to follow, arguably because it was formed on Judeo-Christian values … Apple should set the example for device makers all over the world…”); “knowledge” (“the burden to safe guard [sic] its consumers should fall on Apple, not the purchasers who would otherwise not like to be inflicted with the myriad of problems that stem from viewing porn”); and that “Apple is hijacking great sex by failing to sell its products in safe mode” (“pornography … obviously encourages lust, which hijacks great sex, making the thrill of engaging in deviant behavior the primary objective of intercourse”).
Whether any of these colorful opinions constitutes a legal cause of action remains to be seen.
In his complaint, Sevier suggests that there will be a groundswell of outrage if Apple does not comply with his suggestion, writing that “Apple should see this lawsuit as a warning sign of the class action lawsuits to follow in the event Apple elects to resist the Plaintiff’s reasonable request.”
“Save … countless marriages”
Sevier insists in his complaint that he “is not a proponent of legislating morality in the extreme,” writing that “members of society should not be prosecuted for ‘being human.’” Nevertheless, he says that porn controls on Mac devices could “save … countless marriages [and] impact generations to come.”
The complaint, filed in federal court in Tennessee, alleges fraudulent misrepresentation, products liability, outrageous conduct and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and negligent infliction of emotional distress.
(originally published at )