An actress who appears in the anti-Muslim film blamed for causing
riots in the Middle East has taken legal action to remove its 14-minute
trailer from YouTube.
But it may be an uphill battle entangled with the First Amendment and the right for privacy.
A judge denied Cindy Lee Garcia's request Thursday, in part because the man behind the film was not served with a copy of the lawsuit.
Garcia claims she and her family have been threatened and her career damaged since the trailer for "Innocence of Muslims" surfaced.
"Emotionally, I am very disturbed," Garcia said before heading into court Thursday. "My whole life has been turned upside down in every aspect," she added.
Garcia said she was duped by the man behind the clip and that the script she saw referenced neither Muslims nor Prophet Muhammad. She said she was shocked when she finally saw the end result.
Another actress in the film, Anna Gurji, echoed Garcia's claim, saying she was told the movie was about tribal battles prompted by the arrival of a comet on Earth. According to a Huffington Post report, the movie had a different title, "Desert Warrior," and turned into "Innocence of Muslims" after a heavy dose of dubbing and post-production editing.
"I think it's demoralizing, degrading," Lee Garcia said of the film. "I think it needs to come off."
YouTube has refused Garcia's requests to remove the film, according to the lawsuit. The complaint contends that keeping it online violates her right of publicity, invades her privacy rights and the post-filming dialogue changes cast her in a false light.
"(Garcia) had a legally protected interest in her privacy and the right to be free from having hateful words put in her mouth or being depicted as a bigot," the lawsuit states.
It is unclear who uploaded the trailer to the site. The clip has been linked to protests that have killed at least 30 people in seven countries, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya.
"The film is vile and reprehensible," Garcia's attorney, M. Cris Armenta, wrote in the document. "This lawsuit is not an attack on the First Amendment nor on the right of Americans to say what they think, but does request that the offending content be removed from the Internet," the complaint states.
On Wednesday Garcia filed another lawsuit, for fraud and slander, against Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, the man behind the infamous film who has gone into hiding since the trailer rose to prominence last week.
But it may be an uphill battle entangled with the First Amendment and the right for privacy.
A judge denied Cindy Lee Garcia's request Thursday, in part because the man behind the film was not served with a copy of the lawsuit.
Garcia claims she and her family have been threatened and her career damaged since the trailer for "Innocence of Muslims" surfaced.
"Emotionally, I am very disturbed," Garcia said before heading into court Thursday. "My whole life has been turned upside down in every aspect," she added.
Garcia said she was duped by the man behind the clip and that the script she saw referenced neither Muslims nor Prophet Muhammad. She said she was shocked when she finally saw the end result.
Another actress in the film, Anna Gurji, echoed Garcia's claim, saying she was told the movie was about tribal battles prompted by the arrival of a comet on Earth. According to a Huffington Post report, the movie had a different title, "Desert Warrior," and turned into "Innocence of Muslims" after a heavy dose of dubbing and post-production editing.
"I think it's demoralizing, degrading," Lee Garcia said of the film. "I think it needs to come off."
YouTube has refused Garcia's requests to remove the film, according to the lawsuit. The complaint contends that keeping it online violates her right of publicity, invades her privacy rights and the post-filming dialogue changes cast her in a false light.
"(Garcia) had a legally protected interest in her privacy and the right to be free from having hateful words put in her mouth or being depicted as a bigot," the lawsuit states.
It is unclear who uploaded the trailer to the site. The clip has been linked to protests that have killed at least 30 people in seven countries, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya.
"The film is vile and reprehensible," Garcia's attorney, M. Cris Armenta, wrote in the document. "This lawsuit is not an attack on the First Amendment nor on the right of Americans to say what they think, but does request that the offending content be removed from the Internet," the complaint states.
On Wednesday Garcia filed another lawsuit, for fraud and slander, against Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, the man behind the infamous film who has gone into hiding since the trailer rose to prominence last week.
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