Jack Sweeney, who first gained recognition for tracking Elon Musk’s private jets, has finally responded to Taylor Swift's legal threats.
What Happened: On Tuesday, Sweeney, a student at the University of Central Florida, took to X, formerly Twitter, and refuted the pop singer's claim that his social media flight tracking accounts caused her "direct and irreparable harm, as well as emotional and physical distress."
He posted the letter his legal team sent to Swift’s legal representatives on X saying, "Look What You Made Me Do," referring to the singer's popular song.
See Also: Taylor Swift Wins 13th Grammy, Announces New Album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’
In the letter, Sweeney’s attorney said that there is no illegality in using publicly available information to monitor private jets. They also stated that the threats made against Sweeney imply an unfounded attempt to intimidate and stifle his activities.
"The absence of any credible legal claim, suggests a groundless effort to intimidate and censor our clients. We doubt Ms. Swift will pursue meritless legal action, but if she does, we will defend our clients' rights," the letter read.
In a follow up letter to their December warning, Swift's legal team sent Sweeney another letter dated Jan. 12, saying, "We write to you again to remind you of your obligations pursuant to that letter and the serious safety and privacy concerns that our Client continues to endure as a result of your conduct."
Adding, "We continue to expect your full compliance with the December letter, including ceasing to track, stalk and follow our Client, in order to avoid imminent harm and serious threats to our Client's and the public's safety and safety of those around her."
This includes "refraining from any further posts about our Client to the Instagram account @celebrityjets."
Why It's Important: The 21-year-old Sweeney's tracking activities stirred up controversy earlier in 2022 when he made headlines for refusing a $5,000 offer from Musk to cease tracking his private jet.
At the time, Musk suspended Sweeney's Twitter account saying that doxxing real-time locations was prohibited. Sweeney was later welcomed back on Twitter but with a new account @ElonJetNextDay. The account tracks Musk’s private jet with a 24-hour delay in order to comply with Twitter’s updated policy on restrictions.
Last year, Sweeney resurfaced on Meta's Threads. His account on Mark Zuckerberg's platform was briefly suspended but was reinstated. At the time, a Meta spokesperson said, “This error shouldn’t have happened. It’s been fixed.”
Image by Tinseltown via Shutterstock
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