Judge Slams 'Deceptive' School Election Websites

A local activist who hijacked the names of his political enemies to create "deceptive" election websites may have committed fraud, a judge has tentatively ruled.

In the heat of last fall's Capistrano Unified school board election, Chris Korpi, a volunteer with a political action committee called Capistrano Unified Children First, bought websites named after anti-incumbent forces. Visitors to the sites were automatically transferred to Children First's website or Korpi's favored candidates.

For instance, juliecollier.com sent people to the website for incumbent Gary Pritchard. (Collier is an education reform advocate who runs the Parents Advocate League group.)

When Collier later sued, Korpi claimed his actions were political speech protected by the First Amendment.

But Orange County Superior Court Judge John C. Gastelum isn't buying it.

Using Collier's name “could be considered fraud,” Gastelum wrote in a tentative ruling issued Monday afternoon.

Gastelum said Korpi made it appear the commentary on Pritchard's site was from Collier. Therefore, the appropriation of Collier’s name and the redirect cannot be considered protected political speech, the judge said.

In addition, even though Korpi’s attorney argued his client did not pretend to be Collier, Gastelum said a strong case could be made that it was illegal impersonation, although there were no previous cases that match the particulars of this one.

Korpi's attorney, Robert Sall of Laguna Beach, said he doesn’t comment on tentative rulings.

“The evidence will ultimately establish that Mr. Korpi engaged in protected political commentary, that the plaintiff suffered no cognizable injury and has no viable claim,” Sall said via email, adding that he regards any news article on the tentative ruling "irresponsible journalism."

A hearing is scheduled at 2 p.m. Tuesday on Korpi’s motion to throw out Collier’s case. But the judge said Collier would likely prevail because Korpi violated Collier’s privacy by impersonating her, an action done in bad faith.

“Defendant’s alleged conduct here was not use of [Collier's] name 'in a political campaign' ... it was use of her name to create a deceptive website,” Gastelum wrote.

Collier’s attorney, Laguna Hills-based Wayne Tate, told Patch the judge’s tentative ruling was a strong statement in support of his client.

“The court saw through the version that [Korpi] and his attorney were trying to create,” he said. “It was like an illusion of what they wanted the facts to be instead of what the facts are.”

Korpi faces a similar lawsuit from former CUSD candidate Bill Perkins. In that case, Korpi bought a website domain in Perkins’ name and again argued it was protected political speech. That case is scheduled to be heard by a different judge in July.