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<b><i>Online Extra:</i></b> Common Elements of Gangster Life Not Copyrightable</b>

By Charles Toutant
February 28, 2013

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Gang life marked by death and prison is a common theme not subject to copyright, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held in affirming dismissal of a suit by an author who claimed recording artist 50 Cent stole from his autobiography. Winstead v. Jackson, 11-3771. The 'story of an angry and wronged protagonist who turns to a life of violence and crime has long been part of the public domain,' the federal appeals court noted.

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