Facts

John Dillinger's heirs sued gaming giant, Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), alleging violation of Dillinger's right of publicity and trademark infringement. Dillinger LLC alleged that EA's use of the word Dillinger to identify virtual firearms in EA's "Godfather I" and "Godfather II" video games were unauthorized and violated Dillinger LLC's publicity and trademark rights.

EA filed a motion for summary judgment on First Amendment grounds and the ground that the Indiana right of publicity statute could not be applied retroactively to individuals who died before it was enacted.

Result

U.S. District judge Jane Magnus-Stinson granted EA's summary judgment motion, finding that the games were protected by the First Amendment and the statute was not applicable retroactively.