By Catherine Elsworth in Los Angeles
Last Updated: 8:22PM GMT 07 Jan 2009
Duke Lewton has accused his former wife, Dianna Divingnzzo, and her
father, Sam Divingnzzo, of hiding a listening device inside the
child's favourite toy, Little Bear, in order to spy on him, according
to court papers.
The lawsuit claims Miss Divingnzzo put the bug inside the teddy to
monitor her five-year-old daughter's visits to Mr Lewton after he
gained partial custody of the child. The girl took the bear with her
everywhere, according to court papers.
The secret recordings lasted from December 2007 to May 2008, the
ex-husband claims. His lawyer, John Kinney, said they contained
nothing other than the normal interactions between a father and his daughter.
Mr Lewton, of Omaha, Nebraska, said he only found out about the
recordings when Miss Divingnzzo and her father tried to use them at a
custody hearing.
The judge hearing the case, however, refused to listen to them,
saying they violated Nebraska law which states that at least one
person in a conversation must consent to its being recorded. He would
not even read any transcript of the tapes, saying they could
constitute a crime.
Mr Lewton said that he had no idea his conversations were being recorded.
"I just can't fathom the thought of somebody taking that little bears
head off and putting a bugging device for whatever reason," he said.
Mr Lewton and several other people recorded by the bear, a gift he
gave his daughter several years ago, are seeking punitive damages for
invasion of privacy of $700,000 plus legal fees.
The divorced couple's custody dispute has raged for more than four
years. According to local media, Mr Lewton alleged that his ex-wife
also hired private detectives to follow him and planted GPS devices
on two of his cars.
Mr Lewton said he still searches his daughter's toys and microwaves
her teddy bears for a few seconds in search of any devices that could
be hidden inside.
His custody dispute with Miss Divingnzzo, who has refused to comment
to the media, continues.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
World Class, Professional, Ethical, and Competent Bug Sweeps, and
Wiretap Detection using Sophisticated Laboratory Grade Test Equipment.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
James M. Atkinson Phone: (978) 546-3803
Granite Island Group Fax: (978) 546-9467
127 Eastern Avenue #291 Web:
http://www.tscm.com/
Gloucester, MA 01931-8008 E-mail: mailto:jm..._at_tscm.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We perform bug sweeps like it's a full contact sport, we take no prisoners,
and we give no quarter. Our goal is to simply, and completely stop the spy.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Received on Sat Mar 02 2024 - 00:57:26 CST