Donna Suzanne Shell (née Ostrum; born c. 1957) is an American

activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

critical of child protective services. Shell grew up in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

. Her first experience with child protective services occurred in 1974, when at age 17 she was punched in the face by her father.Prendergast, Alan (February 10, 2005)
Beyond Contempt.
''

Westword ''Westword'' is a free digital and print media publication based in Denver, Colorado. ''Westword'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue ci ...

'' That year, she was put in a

foster home Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home ( residential child care community, treatment center, etc.), or private home of a state-certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent" or with a family ...

and gave birth to a baby she gave up for

adoption Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, fro ...

. She became involved in dependency and neglect cases after Elbert County, Colorado, took away one of her children in 1991 for an alleged spanking by his stepfather that she claimed "left no marks." The child was returned after four days with no further action.Pankratz, Howard (December 19, 2006)
Parent advocate found in contempt.
''

Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in Denver, Colorado. As of June 2022, it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 1 ...

'' Since that time she has assisted other families facing court-ordered sanctions. Shell runs a website called Profane Justice and has also published a book by the same title.Shell, Suzanne (2001). ''Profane Justice: A Comprehensive Guide to Asserting Your Parental Rights.'' Sage Wisdom Press, 2nd edition, In 2002, she told a reporter "I don't think they should ever terminate parental rights without proof that a child has been seriously hurt."Suprynowicz, Vin (November 10, 2002)
Sitting in jail for spanking.
''

Las Vegas Review-Journal The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area. The ''Review-Journal'' ...

Legal cases

In March 2004, the Colorado Supreme Court cited Shell for

contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...

for ignoring a 2001 order to stop practicing law without a license. In 2006 the citation was upheld by the Colorado Supreme Court, and Shell was fined $6,000. In 2005, Shell filed suit on behalf of herself and April Fields in Colorado District Court against several officials connected with Child Protective Services. The case was dismissed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, and was a subject for her 2006 contempt citation by the state Supreme Court, as she was found to have attempted to represent Fields in the court without a license to practice law. On December 12, 2005, Shell demanded

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

pay her $100,000 for archiving her website between 1999 and 2004.Lewis T. Babcock (February 13, 2007).
Internet Archive v. Shell
' Civil Action No. 06cv01726LTBCBS. Internet Archive filed a

declaratory judgment A declaratory judgment, also called a declaration, is the legal determination of a court that resolves legal uncertainty for the litigants. It is a form of legally binding preventive by which a party involved in an actual or possible legal ma ...

Action in the

United States District Court for the Northern District of California The United States District Court for the Northern District of California (in case citations, N.D. Cal.) is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, De ...

on January 20, 2006 seeking a judicial determination that Internet Archive did not violate Shell’s

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, educatio ...

. Shell responded and brought a

countersuit In a court of law, a party's claim is a counterclaim if one party asserts claims in response to the claims of another. In other words, if a plaintiff initiates a lawsuit and a defendant responds to the lawsuit with claims of their own against th ...

against

for archiving her site, which she alleges is in violation of her terms of service.Claburn, Thomas (March 16, 2007)
Colorado Woman Sues To Hold Web Crawlers To Contracts.
''

InformationWeek ''InformationWeek'' is a digital magazine which conducts corresponding face-to-face events, virtual events, and research. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California and was first published in 1985 by CMP Media, later called Informa. The p ...

'' On February 13, 2007, a judge for the United States District Court for the District of Colorado dismissed all counterclaims except

breach of contract Breach of contract is a legal cause of action and a type of civil wrong, in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other part ...

. The Internet Archive did not move to dismiss

copyright infringement Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, ...

claims Shell asserted arising out of its copying activities.Samson, Martin
Internet Archive v. Suzanne Shell.
via Phillips Nizer LLP On April 25, 2007 Internet Archive and Shell jointly announced the settlement of their lawsuit. The Internet Archive said, "Internet Archive has no interest in including materials in the Wayback Machine of persons who do not wish to have their Web content archived. We recognize that Ms. Shell has a valid and enforceable copyright in her Web site and we regret that the inclusion of her Web site in the Wayback Machine resulted in this litigation. We are happy to have this case behind us." Shell stated, "I respect the historical value of Internet Archive's goal. I never intended to interfere with that goal nor cause it any harm." On February 13, 2009, Shell filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Denver against 30 individuals and organizations. As of November 2011, the case is now over, all of the defendants (Except Leonard Henderson) have been dropped from the lawsuit.See generally ''Shell v. American Family Rights Ass'n, et al.'', case no. 1:09-cv-00309-MSK-KMT, U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado (Denver Div.).

References

External links

American Family Advocacy Center (Profane Justice)
*
Internet Archive v. Suzanne Shell
'
Shell v. AFRA, ''et al''the truth is still told (Billy Wiseman)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shell, Suzanne 1950s births Living people Computer law Internet Archive collectors

Legal cases

See also

References

External links