photo ownership / MLK / James Earl Ray

[oftheherd]

I guess there aren't enough facts to determine who the owner is. Only based on what you have written, is sounds like the county is the owner.

"Michael shot pictures of Ray at the request of then-sheriff Bill Morris on the night of July 19, 1968, when Ray was booked into the jail. Ray, who had fled to Europe following King's April 4, 1968, assassination, was extradited to Memphis from London.

Michael, then an employee at Memphis State University, agreed to take the pictures without pay. He developed the photos with equipment he brought to the jail that night, and the sheriff's office confiscated the negatives. The sheriff's office disseminated one of those pictures -- a photo of Sheriff Morris escorting Ray into the jail -- and sealed up the others. Michael said he took 60-70 shots."

But I am not a lawyer.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Work for hire? Doesn't sound like it to me. My guess is that it is his copyright, subject to an implied limited licence to the sheriff to use some of the pictures at the time. But my law degree is 40 years old; I've never practised; and I know nothing about Tennessee law.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Roger Hicks]

the negs were confiscated by the police....

Confiscated without legal excuse = stolen. That was part of why I said what I did. What could be their legal excuse?

Cheers,

R.

 

[t.s.k.]

Without a paper trail to indicate an agreement (or the transfer of funds to imply one), it's assumed the images are Gil Michael's by default regardless of what "he said (s)he said"...at least that's my understanding.
Unfortunately at this time, possession is 90% of ownership until proven otherwise.
If the negs do show up, this could be one interesting argument.

 

[35mmdelux]

"Michael shot pictures of Ray at the request of then-sheriff Bill Morris on the night of July 19, 1968, when Ray was booked into the jail....Michael, then an employee at Memphis State University, agreed to take the pictures without pay."

Attribution seems to be the only issue.