Fake Lawsuit Filed in Name of Giffords Shooter Dismissed By Federal Court

A fake lawsuit filed in the name of former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' shooter was officially discharged by a federal court judge in Arizona.  The bogus lawsuit filed in Phoenix was named under Jared Lee Loughner, who shot former U.S. Congresswoman Giffords and 18 others in Tucson five years ago. 

The lawsuit was filed last week through the mail from Philadelphia to the federal court in Phoenix. Federal authorities are now investigating whether a crime happened when the lawsuit was mailed by somebody pretending to be Loughner, Times Daily reported. It was not the only fake lawsuit filed in Philadelphia as authorities claimed that another fake lawsuit was filed by someone pretending to be the indicted Uber Driver, Jason Dalton. Dalton was convicted of killing six people and injuring two others in Michigan. The fake lawsuit was filed against Uber.

"It's our understanding that the lawsuit was not filed or authorized by Mr. Loughner. Earlier (Thursday), Mr. Loughner's counsel wrote a letter to the Court confirming this understanding. Instead, it appears that a third party may have misappropriated Mr. Loughner's identity for purposes of filing the lawsuit. Federal criminal law prohibits such conduct," said Cosme Lopez in an email, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Arizona, Yahoo reports.

According to Talking Points Memo, the fake lawsuit asserts that Loughner was framed and was demanding damages from Giffords worth $25 million.  Loughner, who is detained in Minnesota at the Rochester Federal Medical Center told his attorney that he didn't authorize the case or filed the lawsuit. It is unclear up to this time on who filed the false lawsuit. Meanwhile, the authorities have become suspicious after a fake lawsuit was filed on behalf of the Uber driver. The suit is seeking $10 million from the ride-hailing service Uber.

Federal lawsuits can be filed easily in person or through the mail.  Inmates could also file it. However, court staff claimed that it is difficult to assess which one is legitimate. Federal court spokesman Rod Hansen said that they will only know that it's a fake lawsuit when the filer wouldn't respond to a formal request for money.

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fake lawsuit, U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords shooter, Jared Lee Loughner, Gabrielle Giffords shooting

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