iSo callers these days have quite a bit to worry about. TCPA class actions are spiking while government regulators are clamping down. Carriers are blocking and labeling calls. And in the background troll litigators are always out there manufacturing lawsuits and looking to make a buck off the statute. Its a bit of a headache, to say the least.
But the one thing I hadn’t seen before–dudes in jail filing in TCPA suits.
Now if you’re in prison it seems you have a lot of time to rest and–if you have access to the internet–cause mischief, especially if you learn about the TCPA. And that is, apparently, just what is happening in some circles.
In Anthony Lynn Fluker v. Ally Financial, Inc. 2023 WL 8881154, Civil Action No. 22-cv-12536 (E.D. Mich. Dec. 21, 2023) the plaintiff sued Ally claiming it made unconsented calls to him using an ATDS and pre-recorded voice messages. One problem–he was in jail without his phone at the time the calls were made.
I mean… my goodness.
The Court made short work of the ATDS claim–joining those courts that have found (probably incorrectly) that targeted calls can never violate the TCPA.
On the prerecorded call claim, however, the Court paused to note Plaintiff could not know if Ally used a prerecorded call or not since he was in jail at the time and did not receive the call.
So…yeah.
The Court also recommended the lawsuit be treated as Plaintiff’s “second strike”–meaning that he can only file one more “frivolous” lawsuit before his right to file actions from jail is taken away from him.
This is one of the oddest cases I have seen in a while. Nice ruling for TCPA defendants, of course.
