Jonathan Lee Riches

Since January 8, 2006, he has filed over 2600{{cite news|last=Harold|first=Zack|title=Former inmate alleges Kardashians, rapper Kanye West conspired with terrorists|url=http://www.charlestondailymail.com/policebrfs/201206260068?display=print|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140305013151/http://www.charlestondailymail.com/policebrfs/201206260068?display=print |archive-date=March 5, 2014|access-date=5 March 2014|newspaper=Charleston Daily Mail|date=June 26, 2012|quote=A search on PACER, the U.S. government website for court documents, found more than 2,600 lawsuits filed by Riches and 49 filed by his alias, "Gino Romano."}} lawsuits in federal district courts across the country,US Pacer US Party/Case Index Website maintained by the federal courts; search for Jonathan Riches prisoner cases on March 3, 2008 returned 1017 cases.{{original research inline|date=July 2012}} some of which have received considerable press attention.[http://blog.washingtonpost.com/offbeat/2007/08/man_of_many_suits_1.html "Man of Many Suits"], Emil Steiner, The Washington Post {{dead link|date=April 2016}} Among the more famous defendants of his lawsuits are New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick,[http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2007/1003072belichick1.html Belichick Scandal Widens] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008104209/http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2007/1003072belichick1.html |date=2007-10-08}} TSG former President of the United States George W. Bush,Howard, Brian. (April 13–19, 2006). [http://www.citypaper.net/articles/2006-04-13/fineprint2.shtml Trial of the century] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071030053702/http://www.citypaper.net/articles/2006-04-13/fineprint2.shtml |date=2007-10-30}}. Philadelphia City Paper. Retrieved October 3, 2007. former Attorney General of the United States Janet Reno,{{Cite web|url=https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCOURTS-paed-2_06-cv-01055|title=06-1055 - RICHES v. BUSH et al|website=www.gpo.gov|language=en|access-date=2017-10-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017044729/https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCOURTS-paed-2_06-cv-01055|archive-date=2017-10-17 |url-status=live}} Martha Stewart,[http://www.boston.com/news/local/connecticut/articles/2007/09/19/prisoner_known_for_suing_celebrities_takes_on_martha_stewart/ Prisoner known for suing celebrities takes on Martha Stewart] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081108045115/http://www.boston.com/news/local/connecticut/articles/2007/09/19/prisoner_known_for_suing_celebrities_takes_on_martha_stewart/ |date=2008-11-08}} Boston.com, in connection with The Boston Globe. (September 19, 2007). Retrieved October 3, 2007. NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon,Saxon, Eric. (2007). [http://www.wsoctv.com/nascar/14108729/detail.html Inmate files federal complaint against NASCAR star Jeff Gordon] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011112846/http://www.wsoctv.com/nascar/14108729/detail.html |date=2007-10-11}} wsoctv.com. Retrieved October 3, 2007. former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick,{{cite news|author=Rankin, Bill|date=August 17, 2007|url=http://www.ajc.com/falcons/content/sports/falcons/stories/2007/08/17/vicklawsuit_0817.html |title=Inmate's bizarre lawsuit against Vick thrown out of court|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |access-date=October 3, 2007|archive-date=January 19, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080119220854/http://www.ajc.com/falcons/content/sports/falcons/stories/2007/08/17/vicklawsuit_0817.html}}[https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna20297008 Transcript: 'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for August 15] NBC News. Retrieved October 3, 2007. entrepreneur Steve Jobs,Jade, Kasper. (September 25, 2007).[http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/07/09/25/inmates_suit_claims_o_j_simpson_is_hitman_for_steve_jobs.html Inmate's suit claims O.J. Simpson is "hitman" for Steve Jobs] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926025142/http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/07/09/25/inmates_suit_claims_o_j_simpson_is_hitman_for_steve_jobs.html |date=2007-09-26}}. Apple Insider. Retrieved October 3, 2007. celebrity blogger Perez Hilton,{{cite web | title = An Embarrassment Of Riches | url = http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2007/1018071riches1.html | access-date = October 19, 2007 | website = The Smoking Gun | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071018232753/http://thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2007/1018071riches1.html | archive-date = 2007-10-18 |url-status=live}} Somali pirates,2008 West Law 612788 and pop star Britney Spears.{{cite web| website=Contactmusic.com| title=Prison Inmate Seeks Spears Restraining Order| url=http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/prison%20inmate%20seeks%20spears%20restraining%20order_1046490| access-date=October 12, 2007| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013091930/http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/prison%20inmate%20seeks%20spears%20restraining%20order_1046490| archive-date=2007-10-13 |url-status=live}} He also sued the late Benazir Bhutto, Pervez Musharraf, and the Immigration and Naturalization Service on November 7, 2007, to prevent him from being deported to Pakistan and tortured upon his release from prison in March 2012.{{cite news |url=http://news.justia.com/cases/featured/california/caedce/2:2007cv02394/169550/ |title=Riches v. Bhutto et al :: Justia Dockets & Filings |publisher=News.justia.com |access-date=2013-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100124215256/http://news.justia.com/cases/featured/california/caedce/2:2007cv02394/169550/ |archive-date=2010-01-24 |url-status=live}} There is no known evidence of any attempt to deport Riches.

On April 9, 2008, Riches filed a request for a temporary restraining order in a US District Court against Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two, developer Rockstar Games, FCI Williamsburg, and Grand Theft Auto itself, claiming that the defendants "put me in prison." The inmate stated, "Defendants contributed to Plaintiff committing identity theft. Defendant's games show sex, drugs and violence which offends me." Riches continued, "Defendants put me in prison. I face imminent danger from violent inmates who played Grand Theft Auto who will knock me out and take my gold Jesus cross."[https://www.foxnews.com/story/inmate-files-restraining-order-against-grand-theft-auto-makers Inmate Files Restraining Order Against 'Grand Theft Auto' Makers] FoxNews.com. Retrieved April 20, 2008.

Riches attempted to intervene as a plaintiff in the Madoff investment scandal, claiming that he "met Bernard Madoff on eharmony.com in 2001" and taught Madoff identity theft skills.[http://www.madofftrustee.com/DownloadDocketImage.aspx?Docket=48 Motion to Authorize to intervene under Rule 7042 & Rule 24(A)2, 24(B) filed by Jonathan Lee Riches.] {{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}} Madoff Trustee Site. Retrieved March 26, 2008.

In May 2009, Riches filed for an injunction against the Guinness Book of World Records, seeking to stop them from listing him as "the most litigious individual in history".{{cite web|url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/may/23/man-sues-book-over-most-litigious-crown/|title=Man sues book over most-litigious crown|last=Clouse|first=Thomas|publisher=The Spokesman-Review|date=May 23, 2009|access-date=25 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090527083941/http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/may/23/man-sues-book-over-most-litigious-crown/|archive-date=2009-05-27 |url-status=live}} Guinness spokeswoman Sara Wilcox told The Huffington Post that there was no such listing, and no plan to create one. "'Most litigious man' is not something Guinness World Records has ever monitored as a record category," she said. The action—like the vast majority of Riches's filings—was dismissed.

Some of Riches's defendants are not even persons subject to suit. These include "Adolf Hitler's National Socialist Party" and the "13 tribes of Israel."Emil Steiner, [http://blog.washingtonpost.com/offbeat/2007/08/man_of_many_suits_1.html Man of Many Suits, Jonathan Lee Riches Sues Everyone and Everything] {{dead link|date=April 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}, Washington Post, August 23, 2007 One lawsuit, in which George W. Bush was the first-named defendant, also includes another 790 defendants that cover 57 pages. They include Plato, Nostradamus, Che Guevara, James Hoffa, "Various Buddhist Monks," all survivors of the Holocaust, the Lincoln Memorial, the Eiffel Tower, the {{USS|Cole|DDG-67|6}}, the book Mein Kampf, the Garden of Eden, the Roman Empire, the Appalachian Trail, Plymouth Rock, the Holy Grail, Nordic gods, the dwarf planet Pluto, and the entire Three Mile Island accident.{{cite web|url=https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/USCOURTS-paed-2_06-cv-01055/USCOURTS-paed-2_06-cv-01055-0/summary |title=06-1055 - RICHES v. BUSH et al |access-date=2024-05-18}}

A number of Riches's lawsuits have been dismissed as being "frivolous, malicious" or for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. Willis Hunt, the U.S. District Court Judge who dismissed Riches's suit against Vick as "farcical," opined that his lawsuits were clearly self-promotional. As per 28 U.S. Code § 1915(g), he is barred from proceeding in forma pauperis.{{cite web|title=Riches v. Wooden et al - Document 3|url=http://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/kentucky/kywdce/4:2010cv00078/74185/3|website=Justia|access-date=5 March 2014|date=2010-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140305035859/http://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/kentucky/kywdce/4:2010cv00078/74185/3|archive-date=2014-03-05 |url-status=live}}

In July 2018, Riches was indicted by a federal grand jury in Arizona. He is charged with making false statements and other frauds after an attempt to file a lawsuit against Gabby Giffords while posing as Jared Lee Loughner.{{Cite news|url=https://tucson.com/news/local/man-accused-of-filing-phony-lawsuit-against-giffords-indicted-in/article_07a4c311-c642-53aa-865e-1d01b77425a2.html|title=Man accused of filing phony lawsuit against Giffords indicted in Tucson federal court|last=Prendergast|first=Curt|date=July 25, 2018|work=Arizona Daily Star|access-date=September 16, 2018|language=en}}

A collection of Riches's lawsuits was published on April Fools' Day of 2016.{{Cite book|isbn = 978-1530603831|title = Comes Now the Plaintiff: Selected Lawsuits and Poems|last1 = Riches|first1 = Jonathan|date = April 2016| publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform }}

In November 2018, Riches self-published Nothing is Written in Stone: A Jonathan Lee Riches Companion, which contains a selection of his lawsuits as well as an autobiography.{{Cite book|isbn = 978-0692042434|title = Nothing is Written in Stone: A Jonathan Lee Riches Companion|last1 = Riches|first1 = Jonathan|date=November 2018| publisher=Fragmentext }} Riches runs a YouTube channel, "JLR Investigates", where he claims to be an investigative reporter.https://youtube.com/@jonathanleerichesinvestigates?si=lW3_zSDn6kH1P0u2

• Vexatious litigation
• Frivolous litigation

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Riches, Jonathan Lee}}

Category:Living people

Category:American prisoners and detainees

Category:Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government

Category:American people convicted of fraud

Category:Place of birth missing (living people)

Category:Vexatious litigants

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)