A Spokane lawyer is leading the litigation in federal court through the conservative friendly social network, Parler, which was started off the internet due to ties to the deadly siege of the US capital last week.
Attorney David J. Groesbeck, of Spokane, filed the breach of contract on Monday in Seattle on behalf of Parler against Amazon Web Services. Amazon called at the weekend to end its role as host provider, effectively removing Parler from the internet. Google and Apple also removed the Parler app from their mobile app stores over the weekend.
In the lawsuit filed in the Western District of Washington, Groesbeck argued that Amazon should give Parler a 30-day notice before terminating the service.
“When Twitter announced two nights ago that it was permanently banning President Trump from its platform, conservative users began massively fleeing Twitter for Parler,” Groesbeck wrote. “The outing was so big that the next day, yesterday, Parler became the number one free app downloaded from Apple’s App Store.”
He explained that Amazon officials have argued that they are not confident that Parler can properly police his platform of ‘content that encourages or incites violence’. Parler does not use content moderators and artificial intelligence to erase offensive posts like Twitter and Facebook.
“Friday night was one of the most popular tweets on Twitter ‘Hang Mike Pence,'” Groesbeck wrote. “But (Amazon) has no plans and has not made any threats to suspend Twitter’s account.”
Groesbeck did not respond Monday to voicemail and text messages left by The Spokesman Review.
It is not clear exactly how Groesbeck became involved in the lawsuit filed in Seattle. He has been practicing law in Spokane for decades, said Doug Siddoway, a partner of Randall | Danskin PS, said where Groesbeck used to work before opening his own law firm.
“David is a thoughtful man,” Siddoway said. “I do not think any lawyer should … be labeled simply because they are taking on a case for an unpopular client.”
Siddoway, 69, has been practicing law in Spokane since 1985. He said lawyers are obliged to represent people who only have claims, even if the arguments are disgusted in the eyes of the public.
“This is not a case for the first amendment like the city of Coeur d’Alene, which (par. Richard, Butler’s leader) denies Butler a parade permit,” Siddoway said. “This is a business breach case.”
According to Groesbeck’s complaint, he noted that Amazon officials found 98 examples that ‘clearly encourage and incite violence’, including someone who posted: ‘How do they do it?’
Siddoway said he thinks Groesbeck’s lawsuit is an uphill battle.
“You can not expect the Amazons and Googles to run a website that is inhabited by those who want to undermine the constitution and democracy,” he said.
Parler, who wants to position himself as a ‘free speech’ Twitter competitor, burst into the public spotlight last year amid conservative backlash against social media sites, especially when President Donald Trump attacked Facebook and Twitter for what he claims censorship of his posts was.
Parler CEO John Matze told the Associated Press that the actions taken by Apple, Google and Amazon were a “coordinated attack by technology giants to destroy competition in the market.”
The company was launched by an investment of billionaire Republican megadonor Rebekah Mercer, who, along with her father Trump, helped bank far-right website Breitbart News and Cambridge Analytica. Right-wing commentator Dan Bongino is also an investor and regular user of the site.
Groesbeck, in the case filed on behalf of Parler, argued that Amazon conspired against the company after it recently entered into a multi-year deal with Twitter. He asked a federal judge for a temporary restraining order to prevent Amazon from closing the site.
“Parler tried to find alternative companies to offer it, and they went through,” Groesbeck wrote. ‘It has no other options. And delaying the granting of this (restraining order) by even one day could also make Parler’s death knell sound as President Trump and others move to other platforms. ”
By Monday afternoon, Parler had taken at least one step to start again.
According to the Seattle Times, Parler transferred his domain name to Sammik-based Epik, which also includes the similar far-right social media network Gab. However, Parler still needs a new host provider.
Epik issued a lengthy statement on Sunday reassuring Twitter and Facebook about the suspension of the accounts of Trump and his supporters. It also compares the January 6 uprising at the U.S. Capitol to ongoing protests over police brutality, sparked by the police assassination of George Floyd in Minneapolis last May.
In 2018, Epik announced that it was ceasing to host the right-wing message board 8chan after law enforcement linked its users to three mass shootings.
“Without smarter discernment beyond a judgment of immediate convenience (sic), the decisions we now make can finally be used to diminish the freedoms that many take for granted,” reads the Seattle Times.
Despite the alleged arguments, Siddoway said he hoped Groesbeck, his friend and colleague of two decades, was not painted in the same way with the same brush as those who would use social media to spread violence.
‘Attorneys are being slandered because of the clients they represent. That’s not how it’s supposed to work, ”Siddoway said. “Everyone is entitled to their day in court.”
The Washington Post and Associated Press contributed to this report.