The Los Angeles Police Department's feelings were hurt when it learned that the Cola Corporation was selling a T-shirt with a logo that combined the Los Angeles Lakers' iconic logo with the phrase "F*ck the LAPD."
To put an end to this grave injustice, the LAPD Foundation (LAPF) issued a legal threat demanding that The Cola Corporation remove the shirts from its website, claiming the shirts infringed on LAPF's intellectual property rights related to the Los Angeles Police Department's branding and trademarks.
The Cola Corporation lawyer responded on official letterhead with a two-word reply: "LOL, no."
According to Reclaim the Net, the legal threat is an example of how "rights claims can be used to crush criticism."
The LAPF letter stated that the organization holds the intellectual property rights for various LAPD symbols and terms, including the department's badge, and the acronym "LAPD." However, intellectual property laws have exceptions for criticism and parody, and the simple use of "LAPD" doesn't constitute infringement.
More critically, the LAPD is a public institution funded by taxpayers, placing most of its works in the public domain. Legal precedent shows that attempts by government agencies to exert undue control over their logos or names are likely to falter.
Previously: LAPD says every car in Los Angeles is part of an ongoing criminal investigation
