Suit alleges Showtime's 'Jasper, Texas' stole rights
By RYAN MYERS The Enterprise

A movie the Showtime Inc. cable television network produced and aired about the racially motivated dragging death of Jasper's James Byrd Jr. has landed the cable channel in federal court in Beaumont.

Anthony A. Whitehurst of Baytown filed suit Jan. 23, alleging the Viacom company violated property rights for the use of Byrd's name, voice, signature, photograph or likeness when it produced the 2003 film "Jasper, Texas."

Whitehurst, reached by phone Monday, said he is not related or socially connected to the Byrd family and is not a lawyer.

In the petition he filed himself, he wrote he is 17 percent owner of property rights connected to Byrd.

"It's just like any other property," Whitehurst said when asked how he acquired the rights. "I got them by contract."

The petition notes that Byrd's three adult children have 75 percent ownership of the James Byrd Jr. property rights. Whitehurst said he is in touch with Ross Payne Byrd, whom The Enterprise was unable to reach.

Whitehurst's widereaching complaint seeks $65 million for various causes of action and damages, including anti-trust violations and deceptive trade practices.

The lawsuit claims owners of the James Byrd Jr. property rights have "exclusive rights for commercial purposes to advertise and market the (property rights) of the deceased individual James Byrd. Jr. in connection with or tying it to any products or services."

Whitehurst said by phone the property rights owners were compensated by Showtime for the film.

Attempts Monday to reach the cable network for comment were unsuccessful. Whitehurst said he did not believe the company had been served with the lawsuit.

The June 7, 1998, crime that led to three capital murder convictions has spurred several movies, including "The Two Towns of Jasper" from the Public Broadcasting Service and "Byrd: The Life and Tragic Death of James Byrd Jr." coproduced by Ricky Jason of Beaumont and Eric Brown of Atlanta, according to The Enterprise archives.

Reactions from the Byrd family to Showtime's film starring Jon Voight and Louis Gossett Jr., were mixed, The Associated Press reported in June 2003.

"The re-enactments, as many times as they did that back and forth, back and forth, it's almost like the movie is celebrating death," son Ross Byrd told the wire service.

Renee Mullins, another of Byrd's children, said she was unprepared for the film's graphic content.

The victim's sister, Mary Verrett, however, praised the film for depicting "how the town of Jasper came together," The Associated Press reported.