Posted by:
OnceMore
(
)
Date: May 09, 2011 05:52PM
The Salt Lake Tribune also covered this story:
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/money/51778199-79/utah-companies-calls-character.html.csp?page=1The owner of the unethical companies, Forrest S. Baker III, is a graduate of BYU in Utah. He lives in a mansion valued at about $5 million, in Salt Lake City.
During one of Baker's telemarketing campaigns Verizon wireless customers received 500,000 calls in a 10-day period. Verizon sued Baker and won.
Baker owns eleven call centers. Some of his prime clients are police organizations. For every dollar Baker collects, the police charities receive about eight cents.
Baker's telemarketing companies rely on the fact that the the Do Not Call registry does not apply to charities.
Seems highly likely that most of the money being solicited via phone calls for police charities and firemen's charities is being funneled to a mormon business. The main, mormon, big wig in the business works for police charities nationwide, and not just in the western states.
I think the way it works is that Forest S. Baker III actively solicits clients that he can claim are non-profit, charitable organizations, then uses them to harass people over the phone for donations.
In addition to calling people on the Do Not Call list, Baker's companies deceived customers -- deception being apparently allowed under the "doing God's work" clause.
Quotes below are excerpted from the Salt Lake Tribune article:
"A Utah company and the Federal Trade Commission have filed dueling lawsuits against each other, with federal regulators alleging the Murray [Utah] company made 16 million calls to people on the National Do Not Call list and deceived customers...."
"The FTC filed its lawsuit Thursday in Tallahassee, Fla., alleging Feature Films for Families Inc., Corporations for Character L.C. and Family Films of Utah, and their owner, Forrest S. Baker III, violated the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule."
"The FTC lawsuit states that in 2008 and 2009 the companies conducted a nationwide calling campaign under the name 'Kids First.'"
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[In other words, Baker's companies and employees were using a non-profit for cover to solicit money.]
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"Under its agreement, the coalition was to receive at least 7 percent of the revenues generated by the sales of DVDs and Feature Films for Families was to keep up to 93 percent in addition to shipping and handling costs. It also had the right to use consumer information it gained from the phone campaign for its own purposes...."
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[Using a very thin false front as a charitable organization to make money for the for-profit company. Sounds like the LD$ church.]