You would think, that prosecuting those running a set of websites almost universally recognized as a major hub for piracy - a set of websites serving almost no other purpose - would be pretty damn easy. Moreso when the defendents have (allegedly) acknowledged that fact themselves, in internal company emails. And had Kim Schmitz and the rest of the megaupload crowd been subjected to an ordinary trial, like almost every other person or group under western law, they would almost certainly have been found guilty in due course, without too much hassle or opportunity for them to sing songs of revolution at their hanging. For once, the copyright police could have gotten their way without making complete asses of themselves.
But there has been a powerful political force behind the prosecutions and arrests - the Music And Film Industry Associations (MAFIA) - which seems now to have pushed rather too hard. Perhaps unintentionally, they encouraged the FBI (and all others involved) to circumvent their normal procedures, leading to a botched investigation and unlawful arrest.
Early came the revelation that the armed New Zealand team contained members of New Zealand's elite anti-terrorism force, the Special Tactics Group. Then a New Zealand judge raised concerns over the extrajudicial arrests. The question of who was to pay for the maintenance of megaupload's data - vital for the defense, was apparently never properly resolved, allowing the defendants to claim (justifiably) that the prosecution was attempting to deprive them of evidence they needed. Now a US judge is suggesting that the case has been so riddled with administrative mistakes (most notably that Kim Schmitz was never properly charged) that it may never make it to trial. And interspersed among this all, hints that the FBI may have obtained some of their most damning evidence (namely the internal company emails demonstrating knowledge of the main use of megaupload and megavideo) illegally, despite the fact that well-set procedures exist for obtaining such information legally.
Those normal procedures are there for a reason. They work well, and they work within the confines of the law. To deviate from them does not just violate the rights of the defendants - it also violates the right of the victims of any crime to have their case brought to a fair trial. Megaupload was almost certainly guilty of copyright infringement - famously so - and because of the corruption of the MAFIA, the FBI, and the New Zealand police, that case may never be brought to trial.
Those who seek better enforcement of the law, whatever the cost, would do well to learn that enforcement of the law must first itself obey the law, otherwise it will never be effective.
