The business mentioned in this report routinely rents copied (or "burned") DVDs to its customers. Recently, the owner, Mr. David Wolf filed criminal charges against me, claiming that I had failed to return "Eddie Murphy: Delirious" in DVD format. I went to court, hoping to argue the point that I'd never rented the DVD in the first place, and that it was some type of error.
In the end, I was intimidated by the County Prosecutor who threatened me with fines totalling $600 plus a criminal record, if I did not enter into a payment arrangement with Video King. I now have to pay this business $47/week for the next six weeks. This amount includes a replacement cost of the DVD, as well as tax, and compensation for Mr. Wolf's time spent in court.
After an overwhelming day in court, I became angry that I hadn't been able to present my case to the judge. The fact that I had rented "burned" DVDs from this establishment came (unfortunately) as an afterthought. I began researching the charges and found that "Eddie Murphy: Delirious" has never been released in DVD format, so how did I rent something that never existed?
I had a friend visit Video King and rent several DVDs, including "Delirious." Upon examining the DVD, it was obviously a pirated copy. It bore a paper label that was peeling at the edges and was obviously created on a computer printer.
I need help! I know that the actions of Video King are illegal, but I'm having serious problems getting anyone to listen to me. I'm basically paying $282.00 for a DVD that cost Mr. Wolf approximately $5.00 to copy, and has probably made 50 times his original cost in rental fees.
I have alerted some of the larger chain stores in the area (Hollywood Video and Blockbuster) in the hope that they might take some action.
Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!
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