Mechanic
November 16th, 2002, 06:03 PM
Cops get slap on wrist for pirating DaveTV
Rome, Georgia Police Officers caught with reprogrammed access cards
30 Rome and Floyd County residents also had modified satellite TV access cards.
10/08/02 - By C.C. Wilson III, Rome News-Tribune Staff Writer
Seven veteran officers in Floyd County last week were suspended from duty for using illegally
modified satellite TV access cards at their homes, the Rome Police Department announced Monday.
Four Rome officers, two Sheriff?s deputies and a Floyd County investigator were suspended Oct. 1
after an internal affairs investigation that began Sept. 24. The officers were initially placed on paid
administrative leaves of absence based on evidence they were using the cards in DirecTV-brand
systems. They were later suspended without pay because they used the cards to get free
programming, a violation of police policy, said Rome Police Chief Hubert Smith. All the
reprogrammed cards have been confiscated or destroyed, said Floyd County Police Chief Jim Free.
The probe also found another 30 residents in Rome and Floyd County had modified cards. Authorities
have chosen not to prosecute, a news release stated. The 30 individuals were not identified.
Free said he is concerned about police involvement. ?It?s certainly an embarrassment to the
department. It?s an embarrassment to these men, to all the officers,? Free said. ?We hope that this
will be a learning experience for them and I believe that it will be.?
The investigation originated June 26 when a citizen filed a forgery report with Rome police, said
Deputy Chief Lonzo Roberson. When police investigated the now-closed case, the suspect tried to
gain favor by telling officers other law enforcement personnel had used the cards, Roberson said.
All three county agencies forwarded the information to the FBI, a news release stated. FBI agents
determined local officers were not selling or distributing the cards commercially and decided not to
criminally prosecute them, though they could eventually be called as witnesses, Free said.
In turn, Smith, Free and Sheriff Tommy Rickman handled the case internally after the Floyd District
Attorney?s office was notified, Free said.
Meanwhile, the FBI has targeted the card distributors, Free said. The Rome Police internal affairs
division determined the officers received the cards from a mutual friend in Floyd County who bought
them off the Internet. That unidentified person, who is now part of an FBI investigation, arranged for
the officers to get the reprogrammed cards for about $100 apiece, authorities said. The FBI would not
comment since the case is ongoing, a spokesman said.
?We all screwed up. We made a mistake,? said John Blalock, a six-year Floyd County police veteran,
who after serving a 1-week suspension returns to duty today. ?I love my job. I love what I do. I made a
mistake. When they came and asked me about it I readily admitted that I did it and that I made a
mistake. I was ready to take my punishment.?
The suspensions ranged from one to three weeks, depending on rank and amount of involvement of
the officers.
?It was one of those things I kind of equated with copying CDs or videos or audio tapes ? you know
it was readily available in magazines and on the Internet. I made a bad choice,? said Rome Police
Sgt. Rodney Bailey, an eight-year veteran and firearms instructor who is serving a two-week
suspension.
Consumer satellite TV systems cost about $50. Most come equipped with preprogrammed
subscription cards that are about the size of a driver?s license. Subscription prices vary with the
number of channels ordered. Basic service, which includes 100 or so channels, costs around $31. El
Segundo, Calif.-based DirecTV advertises its deluxe package online for $81.99 a month.
When satellite TV viewers use illegal cards, they ?cheat the networks out of subscription royalties
and push prices up for others. They also hurt smaller ?mom and pop retailers,? said Robert Mercer,
with DirecTV.
?We want the end user to get the message that they?re going to spend more time and more money
trying to maintain these cards than they would have had they subscribed to begin with,? Mercer said,
adding that programmers send ECMs ? electronic countermeasure pulses ? over the satellite data
stream to ?instruct the (illegal) card to kill itself.?
Pirate cards, Mercer said, violate the Federal Communications Commission Act of 1934 and
Electronic Communications Privacy Act, a wire tap law. If convicted, users can be fined up to
$10,000 per card, Mercer said. Sellers face possible felony action and can be fined up to $100,000
per card.
?We have sued several hundred people in the last year,? Mercer said. ?We identify the end user and
send them a demand letter, telling them ?we know what you?re doing and that it?s a federal offense.??
The company then demands surrender of the card and suggests a restitution value. If those demands
are not met, ?then we will take them to federal court and sue them,? Mercer said.
?People really have to understand this is illegal and it?s theft,? he added. ?Just because it?s an
intangible product it?s not an excuse to steal.?
Rome, Georgia Police Officers caught with reprogrammed access cards
30 Rome and Floyd County residents also had modified satellite TV access cards.
10/08/02 - By C.C. Wilson III, Rome News-Tribune Staff Writer
Seven veteran officers in Floyd County last week were suspended from duty for using illegally
modified satellite TV access cards at their homes, the Rome Police Department announced Monday.
Four Rome officers, two Sheriff?s deputies and a Floyd County investigator were suspended Oct. 1
after an internal affairs investigation that began Sept. 24. The officers were initially placed on paid
administrative leaves of absence based on evidence they were using the cards in DirecTV-brand
systems. They were later suspended without pay because they used the cards to get free
programming, a violation of police policy, said Rome Police Chief Hubert Smith. All the
reprogrammed cards have been confiscated or destroyed, said Floyd County Police Chief Jim Free.
The probe also found another 30 residents in Rome and Floyd County had modified cards. Authorities
have chosen not to prosecute, a news release stated. The 30 individuals were not identified.
Free said he is concerned about police involvement. ?It?s certainly an embarrassment to the
department. It?s an embarrassment to these men, to all the officers,? Free said. ?We hope that this
will be a learning experience for them and I believe that it will be.?
The investigation originated June 26 when a citizen filed a forgery report with Rome police, said
Deputy Chief Lonzo Roberson. When police investigated the now-closed case, the suspect tried to
gain favor by telling officers other law enforcement personnel had used the cards, Roberson said.
All three county agencies forwarded the information to the FBI, a news release stated. FBI agents
determined local officers were not selling or distributing the cards commercially and decided not to
criminally prosecute them, though they could eventually be called as witnesses, Free said.
In turn, Smith, Free and Sheriff Tommy Rickman handled the case internally after the Floyd District
Attorney?s office was notified, Free said.
Meanwhile, the FBI has targeted the card distributors, Free said. The Rome Police internal affairs
division determined the officers received the cards from a mutual friend in Floyd County who bought
them off the Internet. That unidentified person, who is now part of an FBI investigation, arranged for
the officers to get the reprogrammed cards for about $100 apiece, authorities said. The FBI would not
comment since the case is ongoing, a spokesman said.
?We all screwed up. We made a mistake,? said John Blalock, a six-year Floyd County police veteran,
who after serving a 1-week suspension returns to duty today. ?I love my job. I love what I do. I made a
mistake. When they came and asked me about it I readily admitted that I did it and that I made a
mistake. I was ready to take my punishment.?
The suspensions ranged from one to three weeks, depending on rank and amount of involvement of
the officers.
?It was one of those things I kind of equated with copying CDs or videos or audio tapes ? you know
it was readily available in magazines and on the Internet. I made a bad choice,? said Rome Police
Sgt. Rodney Bailey, an eight-year veteran and firearms instructor who is serving a two-week
suspension.
Consumer satellite TV systems cost about $50. Most come equipped with preprogrammed
subscription cards that are about the size of a driver?s license. Subscription prices vary with the
number of channels ordered. Basic service, which includes 100 or so channels, costs around $31. El
Segundo, Calif.-based DirecTV advertises its deluxe package online for $81.99 a month.
When satellite TV viewers use illegal cards, they ?cheat the networks out of subscription royalties
and push prices up for others. They also hurt smaller ?mom and pop retailers,? said Robert Mercer,
with DirecTV.
?We want the end user to get the message that they?re going to spend more time and more money
trying to maintain these cards than they would have had they subscribed to begin with,? Mercer said,
adding that programmers send ECMs ? electronic countermeasure pulses ? over the satellite data
stream to ?instruct the (illegal) card to kill itself.?
Pirate cards, Mercer said, violate the Federal Communications Commission Act of 1934 and
Electronic Communications Privacy Act, a wire tap law. If convicted, users can be fined up to
$10,000 per card, Mercer said. Sellers face possible felony action and can be fined up to $100,000
per card.
?We have sued several hundred people in the last year,? Mercer said. ?We identify the end user and
send them a demand letter, telling them ?we know what you?re doing and that it?s a federal offense.??
The company then demands surrender of the card and suggests a restitution value. If those demands
are not met, ?then we will take them to federal court and sue them,? Mercer said.
?People really have to understand this is illegal and it?s theft,? he added. ?Just because it?s an
intangible product it?s not an excuse to steal.?