Judge Calls Kazza Mom Trial A 'Farce,' Tosses Verdict

Calling the jury's punishment "unprecedented and oppressive," U.S. District of Minnesota Chief Judge Michael Davis ordered a new trial for Jammie Thomas, the 'Kazza mom.'
Thomas, who was ordered to pay a $222,000 penalty for sharing 24 songs through the peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing network, is off the hook, for now. The court granted Thomas a new trial, based on the findings of a formal trial error. While the grant does not impact the penalty amount by itself, the court described the amount previously awarded to the RIAA 'unprecedented and excessive' and even called upon Congress to amend the Copyright Act to address the liability and damages in P2P network cases for individuals, not businesses.
In a 44-page statement, Davis urged the U.S. Congress to improve copyright laws to prevent "oppressive" penalties in similar cases.

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