Bungie Wins Lawsuit Against Destiny 2 Player Who Harassed Developer
Bungie has won close to $500,000 in damages from an individual who perpetrated a campaign of harassment and terror against a Destiny 2 community manager, and his wife, for highlighting the art of a Black community member.
The judgment was issued in default to defendant Jesse James Comer, who failed to turn up to defend themselves in the superior court of the state of Washington, where the case was heard. Comer has been directed to pay Bungie $489,435.52 in damages, costs, and legal fees, with 12% post-judgment interest being added for each and every year that the sum is left unpaid.
As reported by Polygon, Comer’s actions - which are detailed later in this article - gave the court multiple causes to award Bungie damages for the treatment of its workers. They have also inadvertently had wider legal consequences by prompting the court to recognize a new piece of common law, known as a tort.
The new precedent will allow employers to recover the costs incurred while investigating the identity of an anonymous harasser, and putting a stop to their actions, regardless of whether other causes for awarding damages are available. In Bungie’s case, those costs would have amounted to £380,189.22.
“By recognizing a new tort based on the Washington criminal statutes outlawing cyber and telephone harassment, the Court has created a path for those with the resources to identify stochastic terrorists and hold them accountable to do exactly that and recover their costs in court,” tweeted paralegal Kathryn Tewson, who was part of the legal team prosecuting the case on the behalf of Bungie.
By recognizing a new tort based on the Washington criminal statutes outlawing cyber and telephone harassment, the Court has created a path for those with
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