The mum and dad of an American soldier killed while on active duty in Iraq have directed a legal action against the dating sites True.com and PlentyofFish.com as they claimed that the two companies had used a photo of the dead solider to entice women to their websites.
Lt. Peter Burks had received an award for military bravery and had been a member of a Cavalry Regiment in the U.S. army. He passed away almost five years ago, when a bomb exploded and destroyed his vehicle when he was returning to his base after a job in Baghdad.
At the end of last year, one of Lt. Burks former friends was surfing PlentyofFish.com, a popular dating site, when an advertisement on the site appeared under the heading “Military Male in Search of Love.” The advertisement had a photograph of Lt. Burks that was, it appears, taken only a few days before he lost his life.
When she clicked on the advertisement, the friend was forwarded to another site where she went through the process of signing up for further information before being forwarded on to True.com.
“These dating websites are making use of the photo of a deceased soldier just as a means of making money and that’s just not on,” says a Dallas attorney who is representing the soldier’s parents. “This has brought about significant pain to those who really loved Peter – both his family and his fiancée.”
According to the attorney, the photograph used in the advertisement was spread throughout the media after the soldier’s death, and can be viewed on a website dedicated to sending supplies to soldiers serving in war torn areas throughout the world.
The attorney, Mr. Dunn, has demanded that PlentyofFish.com remove the advertisement of which they have agreed to do.
The father of the soldier said that if he received any money due to this lawsuit he would use it to help Peter’s colleagues who are still out there fighting and falling for their country.
