On Tuesday, Jack Sweeney told CNN that he had received a cease-and-desist letter from Swift’s lawyers over the social media accounts he manages that monitor Swift’s travels, threatening legal action.
Elon Musk’s action
The suit by Swift is being followed by Musk’s action as the billionaire Elon Musk once took issue with Sweeney for publicly following his airplane flights online. In December 2022, Musk—who owns X—closed Sweeney’s “@ElonJet” account on the once-popular social media network Twitter.
In addition, Sweeney manages accounts that monitor the private jet travel of Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and numerous other well-known people.
Musk has declared in the past that he and his family are at “security risk” because of the accounts.
Sweeney receives cease-and-desist letter
Swift’s lawyer at Venable Law Firm in Washington sent Sweeney a cease-and-desist letter in December, threatening to “pursue any and all legal remedies” if Swift continued his “stalking and harassing behavior.”
A copy of the letter that Sweeney’s parents received shows that the lawyer, Katie Wright Morrone, wrote that Sweeney’s accounts had increased Swift and her family’s “continuous state of fear for her personal safety” and had caused “direct and irreversible damage, as well as emotional and physical distress.” Sweeney gave The Washington Post access to the letter.
Even the CNN allegation that Musk offered Sweeney $5,000 to deactivate the Twitter account that was tracking his jet is mentioned in the letter. At the time, Sweeney declined this offer and requested $50,000, stating he might utilize the funds for education expenses or maybe a Tesla purchase.
Taylor Swifts lawyer’s claim
Swift, who has battled with stalkers and other people who want her harm since she was a youngster, claims in the letter that it is a “life-or-death matter.”
According to the letter, there are “many public cases” of people who have visited Swift’s homes, some of them equipped with firearms and ammunition, and “attempted to harm her.” According to the letter, revealing her whereabouts provides these nefarious individuals with “a roadmap to carry out their plans.”
For our client, this is a question of life and death, even though it may seem like a game to you or a way to get fame or fortune, Morrone stated. “No legitimate interest in or public need for this information, other than to stalk, harass, and exert power and control,” the speaker continued.
Three other Venable attorneys with litigation experience were named in the letters; one of them claims on LinkedIn to be the creator of the company’s “Digital Crisis Planning & Response client solution” and to assist “high-profile individuals” in handling crises of various sizes, including “celebrity disgrace events.”
