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VAN NUYS - Having already received authority to serve a deposition subpoena on Meta Platforms Inc., attorneys for a woman who appears on "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" are asking a judge for a broader order as they try to uncover the people behind the false Instagram accounts used to send racist messages to her costar's teen son.
Diana Jenkins' lawyers are trying to assure fans that she did not pay for bots to harass Garcelle Beauvais' offspring. Jenkins and Beauvais have had ongoing squabbles.
"Additional expedited, pre-service discovery to identify the culprit behind abhorrent Instagram campaign is essential for this lawsuit to proceed," Jenkins' lawyers state in court papers filed Tuesday with Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Virginia Keeny.
Keeny issued the Meta subpoena on Sept. 20. But Jenkins' lawyers maintain in their new court papers that the information obtained from Meta -- formerly known as Facebook Inc. -- was insufficient to identify the perpetrator.
"Accordingly, defendant's identity remains in the shadows, protected by the fake, public-facing Instagram profiles and anonymous IP Addresses," Jenkins' lawyers state in their court papers. "As a result, Ms. Jenkins needs to serve additional tailored third-party discovery to unveil defendant's true identity."
Jenkins' lawyers are now asking the judge to allow them to serve deposition subpoenas on Comcast Cable Communications LLC, Verizon Business Network Services LLC, Colo Crossing, Scaleway Inc., Inter Connects, Inc., LeaseWeb USA Inc., MPower Communications Corp. and B2 Net Solutions Inc., also known as Servermania USA Inc.
While Jenkins has determined the apparent IP addresses and ISP providers for the Instagram account holders, she cannot obtain the name and contact information of the person using the IP addresses identified by Meta without discovery directed to the other parties, according to Jenkins' attorneys' court papers.
The judge is scheduled to hold a hearing on the request March 23.
Jenkins filed the suit Sept. 8, identifying the defendants only as John Doe and Roes 1-50.
"Bad people do bad things," the suit states. "It is wrong to send racist and bullying messages to a 14-year-old boy. It is wrong to deceive the public into believing an innocent woman is responsible for sending those messages. And it is wrong to mastermind this hateful campaign in anonymity."
Although intense exchanges between Jenkins and Beauvais at times have spilled onto social media, the interactions have remained professional and respectful, according to the suit.