Robert Tortelot (part 7) – the end of the saga
Welcome, Boing Boing, Reddit, and Information Week readers.
The complete saga:
I have recently been approached via email by someone who is quite close to Mr. Tortelot, and has expressed concern that Mr. Tourtelot is getting on in years, and is acting in a way that does not reflect the professionalism and care that he once took in his craft.
In light of that fact, further posts in this thread would not be “speaking truth to power”, but would just be cruelty to someone who needs compassion more than mockery – and would be cruelty to his family, who know that he has been a good man for decades.
I’m therefore discontinuing this thread, and wish Mr. Tourtelot and his family the best.
(Lest anyone think that this is “cover” for being intimidated by some unstated legal threat, let me make it clear that I pretty much never back down from a threat, but that – when it does happen – I will acknowledge it. This particular case is a legitimate change in opinion based on new information.)
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June 23rd, 2007 at 11:39 am
[...] part 7 – NEW !!! [...]
June 23rd, 2007 at 11:39 am
Oh no! That did not end the way I expected! Now I feel bad, and wish I had skipped that Boing Boing post altogether!
June 23rd, 2007 at 11:40 am
[...] part 7 – NEW !!! [...]
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:06 pm
It’s probably for the best. Like most things, it was fun while it lasted. I can see my dad getting all riled up about something like this and getting in over his head…
I think you’re right in stopping. Keep up the good work.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:19 pm
I think you’re making a reasonable decision. This first presented itself as an entertaining response to unreasonable bullying. By the final round of postings it became apparent that if it continued, with what you now know about Mr. Tortelot, you would be the bully.
Leave him be, poor man.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:22 pm
Well, this makes sense now. I can’t imagine that even a wildly incompetent lawyer would communicate in such a childish fashion. I thought he was literally insane and I guess I wasn’t that far off.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:24 pm
Wow, now that this angle has been presented, I can imagine that a man could be brought to his knees like this by age. My father went through something similar, as well – once a respected aeronautical engineer and after a stroke and minor brain damage, he was no longer able to do the job he knew very well.
It added frustrations for my father, and I am astounded how well Mr. Tourtelot fits with my memories of my father.
I hesitate, however, to give Mr. Tourtelot a halo, since he is still practicing law (or advertising that he is) and is apparently offering clients diminished returns. There is a balance between being what you once were, and doing actual harm to those you represent. No one close to Mr. Tourtelot is doing him any favors by pretending he is still capable in the capacity he once was, if this is the case. He still has skills, he still has abilities, just not the ones they once were.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:26 pm
Tom Foolery:
Tom, I agree with you.
I have no hard data, but my personal impression is that we should not be suprised to find Mr. Tourtelot fully retired a few months down the road.
I wish him the best.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:28 pm
(coming in late here) Looks to me like either
1. Some jerk has hijacked Mr. Tortelot’s identity, probably for the “appropriate” name. I note that both he and his client called *you*. Have you ever called either of them? If not, do you have caller ID? E-mail is easy to fake; caller ID is harder but it can be done. A Yellow Pages phone listing would be nearly impossible to fake.
In this case, somebody’s in a heap o’ trouble, and it ain’t you and it ain’t Mr. Tortelot. This has gone well beyond the “joke” stage.
or
2. Something has happened to Mr. Tortelot’s mind. My guess would be a stroke. If this is the case, he should not be representing clients; he’s doing them more harm than good.
In either case, I think it’s time to get the California Bar Association in on this.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Awwww, no more fun. I had hoped to see this end with an entertaining explosion of ego bits everywhere. But regardless of my feelings, your decision is probably the best one anyone can make with the additional information you’ve received.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:35 pm
It seems to me that there is a separate as feasible explanation, rampant sockpuppetry (and the series of lawyer emails you received, starting at a silly interpretation of the law and leading into personal attacks and decaying grammar, sounded very much like fake lawyer sock puppets that I’ve seen in the past, and a 3rd party contacting you with an excuse is right in line with the game, but either way I agree that the best way to deal with it is to drop it. (Though honestly? Jack Thompson proves that it isn’t just sock puppet fake lawyers that do this crap. Of course he also turns his victims in to local police and the FBI, but he shows the same sort of bluster and asshattery.)
June 23rd, 2007 at 1:19 pm
I’m suing you for giving in.
June 23rd, 2007 at 1:26 pm
funny, i was enjoying the saga right up until the middle of post 6 when i thought “maybe age has eaten this guy’s brain” and started to feel sorry for him.
June 23rd, 2007 at 2:18 pm
Well, then he should not be practising law.
June 23rd, 2007 at 2:26 pm
As to whether or not is correct to cease these posts is entirely your call. I don’t feel pity for the man, because some of his statements were none other than that of an ASSHAT. If his apparently large sum of wealth keeps him at a point where he can stay in practice, his family should have stepped in at this point and taken care of him.
I only hope that someone makes the change in Mr. Tortelot’s life that he desperately needs. Otherwise, no one is doing him favors by not giving him a reality check. I also hope that he appreciates you refraining from more of this internet entertainment, and no longer harasses you.
I hope you continue to have entertaining posts on this blog.
June 23rd, 2007 at 2:35 pm
Poor old man is senile, but, that was basically obvious I think looking back.
We should all pity him. Indeed, this poor old man should not be practicing law so while it’s probably a good idea to drop the public torment, you should probably still report him to the CA bar, he is doing his clients a serious disservice.
June 23rd, 2007 at 2:41 pm
Well, I subscribed to the RSS Feed, but since the good part is over, I’ll probably never visit this site again :(
June 23rd, 2007 at 2:48 pm
Good on you. That seems like a reasonable decision indeed.
You write very well, by the way. I’m sure you could keep many of your newfound readers interested/subscribed if you write another funny article right….now.
June 23rd, 2007 at 2:49 pm
Elver – with these posts and the story ALL over the blogosphere I seriously doubt he will be practicing law in his coming days.
If you need more info on the guy TJIC, I have found a bunch of tidbits about him that I could share. Things that would open a whole can of worms for him and many of high legal/political friends. So if he still sues you in the coming months or you find out the “family informant” was just BS-ing you, just look up my email on my posts and I’ll gladly help you out.
This whole episode is a greater exploration into a much bigger issue in our country. Old age and the effects of aging need to be kept in check! We have no checks in place to make sure the status of people’s minds as they get older. Thousands of 80+ year-old senior citizens are out there on our highways driving around and the only thing they have to prove – in order to keep those liscences – is that they can take a picture for their ID. No eye tests, notes from doctors, physical examinations, nothing. Some can’t even sign their names on their signature box because of wobbly hands.
Imagine how many other Robert Tourtelot’s are out in the world in their 70′s – 80′s suffering from various diseases that eat away the brain/mental function. Now how many do you think still practice law, sit on benches as judges or get involved in political matters? All-the-while messing up the lives of innocent people.
The effects of aging are sad. Watching somebody get old and start becoming untangled mentally is extremely hard on the families and friends who love them. But at some point you need to take the car keys away from your arthritic/cataract/Alzheimer ridden mother or father in order to save the lives of others!
Without this blog and recent events I wonder just how long the family would of let him keep suing people and sending death threats.
June 23rd, 2007 at 3:17 pm
I came to this thread from Boing-Boing. It held the flavor of a “Legendary Thread”. http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=399203
However I think that you have done the gentlemanly thing by withdrawing from the field. Kudos to you.
June 23rd, 2007 at 3:25 pm
Sock puppetry indeed.
My personal theory here is that somebody close to the actual Tourtelot — a son, cousin, work associate, paralegal — with an interest in trying to protect the old man’s reputation has been impersonating him, maybe for some time now, in the interests of trying to keep his practice going and cover up his senility.
I think what’s being exposed here isn’t the actual senility of Mr. Tourtelot, but the incompetence and possibly fraudulent behavior of whoever’s been impersonating him at the law firm.
June 23rd, 2007 at 4:18 pm
In another post, you offered $100 towards a wager about the political affiliation of criminally insane inmates. In light of that, I thought you might find this interesting:
http://www.newsmeat.com/fec/bystate_detail.php?city=LOS+ANGELES&st=CA&last=TOURTELOT&first=Robert
What I find interesting is the contrast between his first donation recorded (chronologically) and all the rest. Theoretically, Tourtelot wasn’t even senile back in ’79 so I don’t know what his excuse is.
June 23rd, 2007 at 4:25 pm
I feel I have been foolish to have been so eager to believe that a lawyer in the right state of mind would behave in such a manner—eager because, well, the story has obviously been such a thrilling and entertaining read. I still think it’s right to be well on guard against threats, but when it borders on the ridiculous (boxing? haha!), perhaps next time, some skepticism would do good too.
Anyway, it’s good that we’ve reached this peaceful ending. Thank you, TJIC, for the interesting writing.
June 23rd, 2007 at 4:30 pm
If Mr. Tourtelote indeed has Alzheimers, senile dementia, a stroke, or some other mental issue causing him to act this way, you’re taking the only decent approach here. Once you’ve verified that an individual is disabled, there’s no sport, even for a fighter like yourself, in mocking him for behaviour beyond his control. Good on you.
It sounds like his family is looking after him, and the California Bar complaint you issued should determine why a mentally incapable individual would be allowed by his partners and firm to give legal advice to naive and confused clients like Mr. Versace.
June 23rd, 2007 at 4:37 pm
Adam Jacob Muller: “pity” may not be the right word here. i think “sympathy” is more appropriate (assuming, of course, that the information tjic has received is true). what has reportedly happened to mr. tourtelot is something that can happen to anyone.
in fact, it HAS happened to many of our parents and WILL happen to many of us.
having said that:
tjic: you are a fundamentally decent man, and i salute you. thanks for showing us, by example, that the world is not, in fact, populated primarily with assholes.
June 23rd, 2007 at 4:41 pm
Well played, TJIC! It was hilarious while it lasted. Thank you very much for sharing with us.
I agree with the other posters; you’re being compassionate to allow Tourtelot to fall back into obscurity.
June 23rd, 2007 at 4:43 pm
PS This has earned you at least one listing on someone’s Favorites.
June 23rd, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Wow, a grownup on the web! It would have been cheap easy fun to drag this poor guy on for a few more posts, but you have indeed done exactly the right thing. Welcome to my bookmarks.
June 23rd, 2007 at 6:21 pm
Sorry, I posted this at the end of Part 6, when I’d meant to post it here…
Hmmmm… Feel sorry for him? a slimy republican from Cali having someone else blame his legal issues on a failing mind… I think I’ve heard that one before. And, from quotes of his that I’ve read from the OJ debacle (which Tort-a-lot appears to have profited greatly from) his comments throughout this seem to match…
If he’s losing his mental faculties, he shouldn’t (and wouldn’t for long!) be a member of the Cali Bar.
If he’s NOT losing his mental faculties, he shouldn’t be a member of the Cali Bar.
The googles have given me enough info to conclude that this guy’s a loose-cannon, right-wing freak; his behaviour in this incident fits his M.O. Don’t let him off the hook.
June 23rd, 2007 at 6:39 pm
Congratulations TJIC!
Well handled from the outset to the conclusion. You’ve gain a new reader for some time to come.
Now just my own last shot at the old devil. I don’t feel sorry for him, and I applaud the way he was brought down. I suspect his recent behavior is indicative of a career (a life?) as the big bully getting whatever he could anyway he could. Consider the “short” comments, empty threats, chest pounding arrogant demeanor…
This guy honestly thought he could get TJIC to stop renting XXX’s videos just by intimidating him. When the usual threats didn’t work he stepped it up progressively, all the while trying to get what he wanted just by bullying.
All this crap from other commenters about “no real lawyer would do that” and “he’s so highly rated by his peers” gimme a break! This sort of thing happens all the time. Remeber F. Lee Bailey at the Simposn trial? I’m telling you this guy probably made a career out of this exact type of bravado and intimidation, winning cases or otherwise forwarding his clients’ interests, all the while giving to charity, acting polite in public, and not getting caught. If you only mis-treat the unimportant people the important people often still think you’re a great guy. And thus his peers rated him highly, despite the underlying filth.
And behold the power of the internet. Tourtelot clearly did not understand the sheer volume of spectators to this bout, and the sanitizing influence that that would have on the outcome. Check his first e-mail to his client, with the “never mind the man behind the curtain” attitude about how some pip-squeak with a computer and an e-mail address dare write to my client about IP case law. (Fact is he knew right then he had been found out for a fraud.)
12 years ago the small business would have backed down, just to aviod having to defend a potential lawsuit, even if the claim was baseless. And then the final blunder, the man literally had no idea his e-mails would be read by millions, saved and traceable to him. What he used to mutter to opposing council in the mens’ room during short recess is now there for the world, and more importantly the judge, to see. I know it seems unimaginable to most of you that anyone could not know that, but trust me there are 70-year olds sending e-mail who do not know that.
So I will not feel sorry for Robert Tourtelot. I wish him no ill, but both for his failing mental faculties and his arrogant bullying style, I trully believe both the California Bar and the individual freedom’s we all cherish are better off without him practicing “law”.
June 23rd, 2007 at 8:19 pm
I salute your response but ask one question, I can understand Mr Tourtelot is getting on in years/not fully capable but what about the guy that hired him? If anything he seems more to blame that the crazy lawyer ever did.
June 23rd, 2007 at 8:25 pm
If the situation is as you have represented it here, then I disagree with your decision, but not because I don’t value your decency. He is acting in a professional capacity, but not in a professional manner. He is attempting to gain economic advantage in a business dealing through threats. I feel sorry for him as a person, but any agreement not to pursue the issue with the Bar should hinge on his retiring from law.
My own father has Alzheimer’s, and the DMV allowed him to continue to extend his drivers license long after they should have stopped, which everyone thought was the decent thing — it would have been so humiliating for him and all that. After that there were two car accidents, and then we put locks on all the doors of the house. No one was killed, but it would have been better for everyone if his license had been revoked before it was.
That being said (unsolicited advice for a purveyor of unsolicited advice! :) ) I agree that whatever you choose to do, not publicly humiliating the poor man with his own incompetence is a decent thing. I hope you got a fat check.
June 23rd, 2007 at 9:45 pm
It seems like people are coming down on both sides of the fence here. I think you made the right choice. Even if you can’t be sure that the family member is on the up and up, if there’s a good chance that the man you’re dealing with is succumbing to mental illness the bowing out gracefully is the decent thing to do.
You got an enormous boost of publicity from the folly of this guy and his client, being a mensch about it will help you keep these new readers.
June 24th, 2007 at 12:42 am
Lightning is right. Whether this guy is for real or whether he’s been hijacked, the california bar association needs to know that either (1) this guy is not fit to practice law or (2) this guy has not published a public retraction on his website that these emails are NOT coming from him.
June 24th, 2007 at 2:24 am
TJIC,
Thanks for the laughs! While I agree that pursuing a lawsuit against this senile fool would be wrong, I encourage you to send a letter to the California Bar Association. They definitely should revoke his license so that he won’t hurt some innocent who thinks they are hiring an actual lawyer.
June 24th, 2007 at 3:38 am
I concur,
>Lightning is right.
>In either case, I think it’s time to get the California Bar Association in on this.
If only to have some sort of faith in the system.
June 24th, 2007 at 11:58 am
Entertaining while it lasted.
I agree with earlier posters – at the point that you know he’s impaired, you would be the bully.
All the same, it reminds me of an exchange from many years ago. In my high school homeroom there was a kid named Dennis. He was obnoxious and a bully. My classmates and I tolerated then finally teamed up on him which pretty effectively rendered him an annoying curiosity.
A few years later, at college, I bumped into my homeroom teacher. She was a psychology grad from UC Berkeley and certainly a more open minded person. At one point in the conversation she said “I think we had the highest IQ of any homeroom at Monroe to which I replied “Yeah, but I think Sheephead brought us down a few points. She mentioned that he was actually considered learning disabled. I said “Wow, if we’d known that we might have gone easier on him”
To which she responded “I wouldn’t worry about that – he was an asshole.”
I was somewhat in shock but realized very quickly that nothing – handicap, illness, etc justifies being a jerk.
So while I’m glad you’re walking away, going senile or having a stroke or whatever is going on doesn’t justify or excuse Mr Tort-A-Lot’s behavior.
June 24th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
For all of you talking about taking away driver’s licenses from the elderly, consider this: you couldn’t come up with a strict age limit because it simply wouldn’t be fair. I know 70-year olds that are unfit to drive, and I know 85-year olds that still are. So what do you do? You come up with a standard test. The problem is, there are many 20, 30, 40 and 50 year olds that could never pass this test–there are a lot of crappy drivers on the road, regardless of age.
June 24th, 2007 at 3:21 pm
Congrats on being #1 on google for “Robert Tourtelot”, and links related to this taking up most of the top 10 positions. He has been sent to the internets purgatory of “not the front page of google”.
June 24th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
My favourite part was the “do you have a Black Belt also?” – haven’t heard that sort of talk since primary school. Awesome!
June 24th, 2007 at 5:30 pm
That’s a very dissapointing end to an entertaining saga. I agree with the latter bunch of commenters on here; you should follow this up with the California BAR for the good of the lawyer profession in that county.
Whilst I appreciate why you chose not to pursue action once you were informed his age may have been affecting his work, you could still have taken this to the California BAR without posting it in your blog and thus saved embarassment to relevant parties.
Finally, there are suggestions above that this final communique could well have been false, adding in multiple new scenarios to cover up massive malpractice and unprofessionalism.
June 25th, 2007 at 5:28 am
1) As I’m sure you know, you have no case against him for defamation since you are re-publishing this you wouldn’t stand a chance making your primary case, and certainly nil in damages.
2) You have re-published his emails, which IS a potential copyright violation. His words are his own and enjoy protection even though addressed to you. I think your use of them exceeds fair use, though without seeing them in their entirety it would be hard to assess.
3) All of which is immaterial. Why would you want to get into this kind of a scruff with an attorney — or anyone else? It could escalate into something very unsavory and costly for everyone, whether in the legal realm or another. It’s always best to be the better man and walk away when dealing with unstable entities. Not always as entertaining, but best.
Good luck.
June 25th, 2007 at 10:18 am
I recounted this story to an attorney friend who commented w/o hesitation that there are many lawyers who make a career on simply being an intimidating asshole. I suppose it’s good to hear that Tourtelot’s problem was more organic than just being an a-hole.
June 25th, 2007 at 1:32 pm
How sure are you that this isn’t a very well fabricated attempt on his end to extricate himself from the deep deep hole he’s dug?
In the end, every infraction you accused him of is still pertinent. Someone hired this guy to chase you down over imagined copyright violations.
And if he’s so senile, why is he still featured so prominently on his website? There’s liability there if he’s that insane and still taking cases!
The firm should at least be into you for your time, the hassle, etc etc (you know, all that stuff that lawyers are so happy to sue for).
Very lame (and I call BS) excuses from his end.
June 25th, 2007 at 1:40 pm
And then, there’s something very fishy about a lawyer named “Tourtelot”…
Torte-A-Lot?
Torte being a legal term that means a civil wrong, and can be a criminal wrong, that is recognized by law as grounds for a lawsuit.
Very suspect. Like getting contacted by an electrician named Sparky.
Or maybe it’s as real as the inventor or the toilet being named “Crapper”. Who knows.
June 25th, 2007 at 3:48 pm
The funniest thing about this ending is how well it meshes with this post from BoingBoing not too long ago: http://www.boingboing.net/2006/09/13/weird_old_ad_for_tho.html
Thorazine, for prompt control of senile agitation!
June 25th, 2007 at 6:27 pm
Frankly I am disappointed. I don’t quite see the relevance of if the guy has gone to pot or not. Legal action was threatened by a person claiming to be a lawyer in good standing. The fact that his client allowed him to act on this behalf puts them both on the hook. The impression I get about this family thing is an excuse to get out of tortuous action. It smells.
June 25th, 2007 at 7:48 pm
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June 25th, 2007 at 8:17 pm
I am glad you are taking he high road on this. Continuing would server no purpose. What is interesting is the original reason for all of this, that the author of a video chooses to use Mr. Tortelot as his council. Perhaps that is why he sent the original communication, on advice.
June 25th, 2007 at 8:26 pm
I suspect he went from being an asshat to an old asshat. His bluffs just aren’t as good anymore. Don’t let the sob stories his friends/family feed you influence you.
Please pursue this.
June 25th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
As a practicing attorney in Texas, I think you should report this to the California Bar Association. If he is this off-base, then the bar needs to know. What he did in his dealings with you is one thing (laughable, really); but how funny would it be if he ended up costing someone millions of dollars because his mind no longer works as well as it used to.
Bar discipline, while harsh, is not meant to punish the lawyer; rather, it is intended to protect the public and the integrity of the bar (don’t laugh — it’s true!).
June 26th, 2007 at 4:01 pm
Even if the guy is getting old and senile, the fact remains that he absolutely should not be allowed to practice law. I really hope your response to whomever contacted you on behalf of the aging Mr. Tortelot was something along the lines of ‘I’m sorry to hear that, but what the hell are you doing allowing him to continue practicing law?’ How many other people has/will he needlessly harass and threaten with legal action? What if some of those people aren’t as willing to fight/educated on law as you?
Even if you don’t continue making all of the exchanges public, I sincerely hope that you will follow through with complaints to the California Bar Association. Irregardless of the cause for Mr. Tortelot’s current ineptitude, he’s still inept and should not be working.
June 27th, 2007 at 10:55 am
Boing Boing removed all it’s references to this story! Why? hmmm….
June 27th, 2007 at 11:51 pm
They said why.
http://www.boingboing.net/2007/06/25/smartflix_and_lawyer.html
Because all things considered being a nice guy is better than not.
July 25th, 2007 at 9:29 am
So due to his (Denny Crane-like) diminished mental capacities, am I to hope that he has ceased to practice law for his firm? Would his continuing to do so be ethically questionable for his firm and his partner to allow? What the email you hold in your hand amounts to is an admission of his failings and if he represents ANYONE in the future, I would offer it as evidence in appeal after appeal.
Bottom line, as it has been said for years: Arguin on the internet is like being in the special olympics… Win or Lose, you are still retarded.
peace
February 17th, 2008 at 12:07 am
Online Computer Training For Free…
So you’re on a tight budget and at the same time you want some computer training, right? Nowadays there are a lot of options for people seeking better themselves through various training programs and certification classes….
June 18th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
So it’s one year on, and – going by the website, at least – he’s still practising…