Hey, there! Log in / Register
Police in Woburn do their job, raid company selling 'Do Your Job' caps, stickers without NFL permission
By adamg on Fri, 02/03/2017 - 5:04pm
Illegal caps.
An investigation started by Homeland Security culminated today in a raid at the Woburn headquarters of Chowdaheadz, which makes Boston-related sports clothing.
Police from both Woburn and Topsfield, along with Homeland Security agents and representatives of the NFL, burst into the offices on Industrial Parkway around 1 p.m. and seized caps and stickers bearing the slogan "Do Your Job," which the NFL had declared counterfeit since it had not given the company permission to use. Seems the Patriots actually trademarked the phrase in February, 2016.
Woburn Police say the investigation began in December when:
Representatives from the NFL received information from Homeland Security Investigations that a kiosk located at the South Shore Plaza in Braintree was selling counterfeit NFL items with the slogan "Do Your Job." ...
Following an investigation, police determined that the kiosk purchased these items from Born Into It, Inc. doing business as Chowdaheadz, an online store that sells Boston sports-themed merchandise.
Police add:
As a result of the search, counterfeit NFL merchandise including t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats and other items, as well as business records, production materials and equipment was seized.
This investigation remains active and ongoing, and all charges related to this case will be brought forth by summons. Charges will include Counterfeit Merchandise or Services in violation of M.G.L. c266 s147.
If the total number of items seized is more than 1,000, company officials could face up to ten years in state prison.
Woburn Police Chief Robert Ferullo was pretty pleased with the raid:
I would like to praise the hard work across all of the agencies involved in this case including Woburn Police and investigators from Topsfield Police, Homeland Security and the NFL. We will continue to assist in any way we can to aid this investigation moving forward.
Free tagging:
Ad:
Support Universal Hub
Help keep Universal Hub going. If you like what we're up to and want to help out, please consider a (completely non-deductible) contribution.
Comments
Same clown
who tried to trademark "Boston Strong."
Strong
Remember when some did Toronto Strong, and then the Boston Strong people were mad because it was their slogan?
And let's not forget ...
That before Boston Strong there was New Jersey Strong (due to Sandy).
Thought that was "stronger
Thought that was "stronger than the storm"?
Boston ripped it off from
Boston ripped it off from Vermont (after Irene).
And before New Jersey Strong
And before New Jersey Strong there was Livestrong (due to <redacted>).
SUCH TOTAL BULLSHIT
These morons act like they just solved the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby.
The NFL is greedy. Plain and simple. Chowdaheadz is a legit, small business.
They weren't selling illegal Pats merchandise. They made some hats that said "Do Your Job" on them.
These clown try to shut down every vendor selling anything that might take Superbowl dollars away from the NFL and they obviously have the money to pay investigators to "fake" shop all over the region.
I personally have had them try to stop me from selling legit stuff that was legal. They are bullies.
I feel bad for those guys. They could have simply sent them a cease and desist but it's SB weekend so..... assholes.
VERY different
That case was one Leafs fan, during the playoffs against the Bruins, 3 weeks after the bombings, and intentionally meant to be distasteful. I'm pretty sure the Leafs actually banned the guy.
The sign also said "Toronto Stronger" and had a ribbon mocking the Boston one on it.
Speaking of Toronto ...
Conrad Strong!
Nice to know that despite all
Nice to know that despite all the important things Homeland Security is needed for, that they still have time check vendor cart at the South Shore Plaza.
I for one am glad that I can now purchase this $2 hat for $30 from the Patirots pro shop.
I'm sure we'll all sleep better at night...
knowing that DHS is protecting the NFL from unlicensed hats bearing a common phrase that the Patriots claim to own.
My thoughts exactly
The perks of Bob and Tom being tight with the president?
rip
glad i got mine while the gettin was good
Why are police or homeland security involved in this?
Aren't trademark disputes usually a matter for the civil courts? I hope the local company prevails against the NFL bullies, because "Do Your Job" is a pretty generic phrase.
Counterfeit merchandise
It is actually a criminal offense to peddle counterfeit merchandise in Mass. See https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIV/TitleI/Chapter266/Sect....
If I had to guess, I'd say that the rationale behind that law was probably to protect consumers (so that they don't accidentally buy low-quality stuff that they think is brand-name), rather than to protect owners of vapid trademarked phrases (so that they can make 3000% profit on sweatshop clothing). But, I don't know for sure.
I think your general question still stands though: why weren't police doing something marginally useful for actual people instead? Seriously, it probably would have been time better spent if these cops were assigned to just spend all day standing on streetcorners, smiling and waving to passersby. And, what the hell does this have to do with the nation's security?
Why the feds are involved
I can give you a general answer on why the Feds/Homeland Security are involved and it has little or nothing to do with Bill and Tom's relationship with the Disaster In Chief.
Counterfeit merch of all kinds is often sold by organizations to finance crime. Everything from fake handbags to illegal DVDs and crappy sports jerseys have been linked to everything from terrorist groups to human trafficking circles. That's really the only place where law enforcement gets interested in this stuff, they follow the money
Anybody from around here knows about Chowdaheadz. Was this overkill? Yeah, probably. Are we going to see more stuff like this happening now that Cheetolini is in charge? Yep.
United States, Incorporated
God bless the special agents and policemen who are keeping America safe for corporate profits.
Incidental, 100,000 fast food managers own the copyright on that phrase.
Rent-seeking billion-dollar
Rent-seeking billion-dollar corporations and their cartels (e.g., MPAA, RIAA) have spent the past 20 years turning "intellectual property" violations into crimes that can get people sent to jail for longer than murder.
Them with the gold makes the rules
The large holders of intellectual property have convinced the government to handle the enforcement of their IP rights through the criminal justice system at taxpayer expense, rather than litigating it through the civil system at their own expense.
According to the USPTO
According to the USPTO database record (linked to above) the mark was only published for opposition on Tuesday, so it's not registered yet. How can the NFL claim infringement for a mark they don't own yet?
Ugh, I am hating their database
Looks like the link I used was not a permanent one (and I'm not seeing how to get a permanent link), but if you search, you'll find several "Do Your Job" listings, including a trademark by the Patriots on "Do Your Job" filed on Nov. 17, 2015 and published for opposition on Feb. 9, 2016.
It's been registered for a while
The registration for the first Patriot's "Do Your Job" was made official on the 1st of July 2014, and it was first used in commerce on the 1st of April 2013.
I don't know why people's undies are in a snit over DHS handling this. They do more than immigration (they inspect cargo at ports for agricultural products that could adversely affect our domestic food supply, for example), and counterfeit items is in their wheelhouse. I want to know why the NFL is involved, since the trademark is solely the property of the New England Patriots, LLC.
Finally, I can sleep
Glad DHS is keeping a close eye on those kiosks that sell the poop emoji pillows.
lol
i bought one of those at the square one mall :-)
lol
i bought one of those at the square one mall :-)
E: and appropriately, it seems i dropped a deuce
Is this just because the hat
Is this just because the hat has Do Your Job™ on it or is the entire hat a knock off of an existing NFL hat that looks exactly the same?
Unfair Strong Arm Tactics
So, since the NFL and Patriots missed its opportunity to monetize "Do Your Job" a decade ago when Chowdaheadz first produced its line of "Do Your Job" slogan t-shirts, only now they want to create a "trademark" for this open-mark?
That's like Record Labels trying to sue the "Life is good" t-shirt brand decades later for frequent use of famous copywritten 1960's lyrics on t-shirts.
Unless Coach Belichick trademarked his commonly used bosses' phrase "Do Your Job" like UMass Basketball Coach Calipari pre-emptively trademarked "Refuse to Lose" in the 90's then the league should have Nothing to do with Chowdaheadz' 10-year old product line. The Woburn police chief should be most concerned with this strong armed theft of his constituent's property; not the other way around wagging his tail for The Man. Who put the NFL in charge of this debatable open-mark? Even journalists captioining a photo without the term "Alleged" in front of "Illegal Caps" sways your public opinion without providing all the facts so borders on slander.
Supportive local I.P. Attorneys should offer pro bono counsel to Chowdaheadz and put Football back in its place. Of course, the NFL can bankroll litigation civil infractions and somehow use our federal courts for this "criminal infringement". As we know Corporations like Enron, Goldman Sachs, Exxon, Firestone or Anderson Consulting are quite fallible so why in the world would free-market loving Americans trust the National Football League to arbitrarily define intellectual property, then threaten theft as "confiscation" and criminal jail time? Who robbed who here?
This is why you trademark
I suppose Chowderheadz could present proof in court that they had, in fact, been using the phrase "do your job" in commerce since 2007, but in the end, the New England Patriots LLC has legal proof prime face in the form of a registered federal trade mark granted in 2013, making the NFL's job much, much easier.
Or, much like you, Chowderheadz can just keep on claiming that they have been selling said products for a decade and somehow lucked out a few years back when the Pats randomly starting using the phrase in commerce without presenting proof, in which case those pro bono lawyers you are hoping for will be out time and, as lawyers look at it, money.