Bassett v. Jensen
| Decision Date | 11 May 2020 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 18-10576-PBS |
| Citation | 459 F.Supp.3d 293 |
| Parties | Leah BASSETT, Plaintiff, v. Monica JENSEN, Jon Blitt, Mile High Distribution, Inc., Joshua Spafford, April Carter, Gamma Entertainment, William Gray, and Fiore J. Barbini, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts |
John A. Taylor, Taylor Legal Counsel, Bristol, NH, for Plaintiff.
Natalie R. Megaloudis, Stephen A. Roach, Roache, Ioannidis & Megaloudis, LLC, Boston, MA, for Defendant Monica Jensen.
Gary Jay Kaufman, Pro Hac Vice, Noam Y. Reiffman, Pro Hac Vice, Yvette Essakhar, Pro Hac Vice, The Kaufman Law Group, Los Angeles, CA, Natalie R. Megaloudis, Stephen A. Roach, Roache, Ioannidis & Megaloudis, LLC, Boston, MA, for Defendants Jon Blitt, Mile High Distribution, Inc.
Saris, D.J.
Plaintiff Leah Bassett rented her Martha's Vineyard home to Defendant Joshua Spafford for personal residential purposes. Unbeknownst to Bassett, the property was then used as a set for pornographic videos and photographs, as well as housing for cast and crewmembers.
In March 2018, Bassett filed this suit alleging ten counts: (I) breach of contract, (II) trespass, (III) negligence, (IV) violations of Chapter 93A, (V) civil conspiracy, (VI) civil fraud, (VII) infliction of emotional distress, (VIII) interference with advantageous business relations, (IX) copyright infringement, and (X) civil RICO violations. An eleventh count of (XI) defamation was added in May 2018.
Three defendants — Monica Jensen, Jon Blitt and Mile High Distribution, LLC (collectively, "Defendants"1 ) — have moved for summary judgment on all claims. Bassett cross-moved for summary judgment on four counts — Chapter 93A, civil conspiracy, infliction of emotional distress, and copyright infringement.
After hearing, the Court ALLOWS IN PART (Counts I, II, III, VI, X, XI) and DENIES IN PART (Counts IV, V, VII, and VIII) Defendants’ motion for summary judgment (Docket No. 86). The Court defers ruling on Count IX pending Plaintiff's submission within 45 days of an analysis of all appearances of her copyrighted works in Defendants’ films. The Court also DENIES Bassett's motion for partial summary judgment as to Counts IV, V, and VII (Docket No. 99) and defers ruling as to Count IX.
The parties have filed cross-motions for summary judgment. With respect to Defendants’ motion, the following facts are presented in the light most favorable to the Plaintiff, unless otherwise noted.
In October 2014, Leah Bassett signed an agreement with Joshua Spafford to lease her Martha's Vineyard residence from October 4, 2014 until May 15, 2015. The lease was "for use as a personal residence, excluding all other uses." Dkt. 89-1 at 2. The lease also provided that the residence was to be "used and occupied only by the members of the Tenant's family." Id. The lease prohibited Spafford from assigning or subletting the property without prior consent. Although Bassett would be out of the country for the term of her lease, several members of her family lived on the same private road as her property and periodically assisted Spafford with tasks like clearing snow from the driveway.
Spafford had come to Martha's Vineyard to work as a still photographer and camera man for Monica Jensen, an adult film director with the professional pseudonym of Nica Noelle. Jensen was directing pornographic films for distribution by Mile High Distribution, Inc. ("Mile High"), a Quebec-based adult film distribution company.
Spafford initially rented Bassett's house for his own residential purposes, believing that filming would take place at other locations on the island. However, Jensen soon pressured him to use Bassett's residence as both a filming location and as housing for cast and crew. Jensen promised to cover the property's rental costs and threatened to fire Spafford if he did not agree.
According to Defendants, Bassett's home and household items appear in scenes from nine films that were distributed by Mile High, as well as still images accompanying five other films. Scenes showing Bassett's home also appear in two compilation titles that were distributed by Mile High. Bassett asserts that she has found twenty-one films featuring scenes or stills from her house. In addition, cast members took promotional photos at the property that they posted on their own social media accounts.
The extent of Jon Blitt's role in Mile High during this period and his involvement with Jensen's projects is disputed. Blitt asserts he was helping to run Mile High on behalf of his father, who was ill, but was not an employee and had no direct involvement in Jensen's activities on Martha's Vineyard. Bassett claims Blitt held a managerial position at Mile High, where he developed and then directly oversaw two "brands" of pornographic films, titled "Icon Male" and "Transsensual," which included the films directed by Jensen on Martha's Vineyard.
On March 15, 2015, over five months into the lease, Spafford sent Bassett an email that he had been "let go from [his] job" and would be "completely unable to finish [his] payments on [the] lease from March to the end (May)." Dkt. 89-2 at 2. He wrote that the house was "in good condition" but that there were clothes, photography gear, and bags of garbage left behind. Id. He also wrote that he had disabled all the carbon monoxide alarms when they went off in the middle of the night, including one alarm in Bassett's locked master closet.
The next day, on March 16, 2015, Bassett's mother went to check on the property. She saw "strangers, not authorized guests, unpacking their luggage." Dkt. 89-3 at 2. Bassett's mother then encountered Jensen, who said she was subletting the property. Soon after, Jensen spoke with Bassett by phone and said she had paid Spafford for the February and March rent. Jensen offered to take over the lease for the remaining months. At this time, Bassett did not know Jensen was an adult film director or that her residence had been used as an adult film set. On March 20, 2015, Bassett's mother and stepmother sent her photographs of the condition of the house, including some damage to the property.
Bassett responded to Spafford by email on March 22, 2015. She informed Spafford that he was in breach of the lease agreement and owed "a minimum of $7,933" for unpaid rent and incidentals, as well as additional charges for damage to the property, which had not yet been assessed. Dkt. 89-3 at 3-4. She told Spafford that his "story about the alarm sounding, even if true, isn't grounds for breaking and entering" into the bedroom closet. Id. at 3. Bassett informed Spafford that she would accept $4,000 to settle his debt but would pursue legal action if he refused her offer or did not respond within a week.
Bassett first learned pornographic movies had been filmed in her house on March 26, 2015. While in discussions with Jensen about continuing the lease, Bassett received an email from an address she did not recognize. She searched the name online and discovered Jensen's pseudonym, as well as her affiliation with Mile High. To her distress, Bassett saw her own house in online promotional materials.
The next day, on March 27, 2020, Jensen emailed Bassett and offered to "pay [Bassett] a sum of money ... in exchange for a signed release." Dkt. 98-3 at 8. Jensen still did not disclose that the house had been used to shoot pornographic films and images, although Bassett now knew. Bassett refused the offer and told Jensen to vacate the premises.
In May 2015, Bassett returned home and "spent weeks" repairing the damage to her property. Dkt. 98-3 at 9. Bassett was nonetheless able to rent her house during the summer season and "did not lose any rental income" in the summers of 2015, 2016, or 2017. Dkt. 89-4 at 8-9. She believes she lost income in the summer of 2018 because she "had to cancel [her] rental website when [she] filed the lawsuit because of the bad publicity." Id. at 9.
In the meantime, Bassett was "experiencing anxiety, inability to sleep, [and] lack of concentration" in the wake of these events. Dkt. 89-27 at 4. She became "paranoid" and suffered from "sadness and anxiety [that was] deep, dark and seemingly endless." Dkt. 98-3 at 8. In September 2015, she began to see a therapist. Her therapist, a licensed social worker, diagnosed Bassett with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
("PTSD"), although the diagnosis later shifted to "acute distress disorder." Dkt. 98-2 at 30, 35. In 2018 and 2019, Bassett was prescribed medications for anxiety and depression.
On September 30, 2016, a year and a half after learning about the pornographic movies, Bassett filed three certificates of registration with the United States Copyright Office under the category of "Unpublished Collection." The collections are (1) "Bathroom 1 Drawing, et al.," which comprises twenty-one drawings, paintings, and photographs; (2) "Handsewn and Designed Slipcover 2, et al.," which comprises twenty-two works, including handsewn slipcovers and pillows, wall hangings, and collages; and (3) "Table 1 Hand-painted Top, et al.," which comprises ten works, including painted tabletops, a fireplace, and items of pottery. Dkt. 89-18 to 89-23.
Bassett registered the copyrights because she "knew that there was a possibility [she] would have to file a lawsuit." Dkt. 89-4 at 38. She had never sought registration before because she "never had to sue anybody for using [her] artwork." Id. The works were "solely being used to add decorative touches to [Bassett's] personal home in a manner that [she] felt would be warm and aesthetically pleasing." Dkt. 89-17 at 5.
At one point, Bassett had a website at LeahBassett.com, as well as Facebook and Instagram pages, showing her artwork. However, she took the pages down before filing the present suit because she was fearful of Jensen "attacking [her] in some way...
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