Like major theft on the high seas, the infringement of copyright is known as "piracy," and is considered a serious crime. U.S. District Judge Terrence W. Boyle has correctly shot down an attempt by North Carolina's Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and others to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Nautilus Productions LLC after the state legislature passed a law (commonly known as "Blackbeard's Law") that allowed officials with the State of North Carolina to effectively pirate and use literally years of properly registered, copyrighted work and intellectual property, consisting of photos and video produced and belonging to Nautilus, without permission or payment.

Nautilus' work is extremely valuable because it documented almost two decades of salvage and underwater archaeology done on the wreck of the pirate Blackbeard's ship Queen Anne's Revenge. It is of immense interest to the public and was produced by Nautilus at absolutely no expense to the State of North Carolina.

The law apparently rests on the absurd claim that, simply because copies of Nautilus' photographs and video were in State possession, the work was "public record" and could thus be altered, copied and distributed by the State without payment to or the permission of the copyright holders. In my humble opinion, the legislature's attempt to void rights guaranteed and belonging to Nautilus under the United State's Constitution, would be no more justified than it would be if the State of Georgia suddenly passed a law claiming that the book and movie Gone With The Wind were public property, simply because the State of Georgia had copies in their files. Fortunately, Georgia's legislature hasn't been that stupid.

The federal judge noted that protection of copyrights is a “right of such importance to the founders that it was, unique among most functions undertaken by the federal government today, expressly mentioned in Article I as an important protection to be ensured by the national government.” His decision means that Nautilus' lawsuit for copyright infringement and for a declaration of the statute’s invalidity can proceed in Federal Court.

Perhaps it should be noted that Blackbeard was able to commit his piracies largely because he had the protection of Governor Eden of North Carolina. I find it unfortunate that this law has the sanction of today's governor of North Carolina. It might make people believe that North Carolina still supports piracy.

The following blog has far more details and is well worth reading - Judge Spikes Attempt to Dismiss Blackbeard's Lawsuit

F﻿OLLOW UP DISCUSSION: In 2015 North Carolina passed a law (commonly called Blackbeard's Law) effectively taking away all copyright protection for "all photographs, video recordings, or other documentary materials of a derelict vessel or shipwreck or its contents, relics, artifacts, or historic materials in the custody of any agency of North Carolina government or its subdivisions" by declaring such photos, videos, and materials to be "a public record." The law stated "There shall be no limitation on the use of" such photos, videos and materials, which means that the State and even private parties can use them without payment to the legally registered copyright holder even if they were created without any cost whatsoever to the State, as is the case with work produced over almost two decades by privately funded Nautilus Productions LLC, which was documenting the privately funded archaeological salvage of Blackbeard's ship, Queen Anne's Revenge. That law has been challenged in court by Nautilus as unconstitutional and several parties (including the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources) have been sued for copyright infringement and violation of other federal laws.

The following questions are submitted for discussion:

1. Should State law be allowed to trump rights guaranteed or provided by the U.S. Constitution?

2. Should privately produced and copyright protected photos, videos, and other documentary materials be treated as public records simply because they relate to a shipwreck and are in the custody of a state agency?

3. Should copyright infringement and/or other violations of federal law be ignored or condoned simply because the State has passed a law taking away property or rights, without due process, that are provided, protected and/or guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution?

4. Should public officials who knowingly engage in copyright infringement and/or other violations of federal law and/or act in violation of constitutionally guaranteed rights be fined, punished or otherwise held responsible for their acts?

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