Jury Rejects Texas Agent’s Claim that RNC Stole His W’04 Design

The design of the “W’04” bumper sticker prevalent during President Bush’s re-election campaign was not stolen from a Texas insurance agent, a federal jury in Texarkana, Texas, has ruled.

Jurors deliberated for less than an hour Nov. 16 before finding that Jerry Gossett was not entitled to damages from the Republican National Committee or the party’s chief campaign supplier.

Gossett had asserted that the sticker derived from a design he copyrighted in 2001, and that he had shopped his version around to high-ranking RNC officials before the campaign’s version debuted. In court filings, his attorneys estimated actual damages between $500,000 and $7.5 million.

Gossett, of Wichita Falls, declined to comment after the verdict.

The oval logo used by Bush’s campaign features a block-lettered W against a white background. Attached to the right of the W is an American flag, which rests above the ’04 lettering.

Gossett’s logo also features a flag extending from a W, but the letter is thin and serifed and followed by a period, which the Bush campaign sticker lacks. Instead of ’04, Gossett’s rectangular sticker includes the number 43 to distinguish Bush from his father, George H.W. Bush, the nation’s 41st president.

“Because of the political mood of the country, it was a difficult time to try a case like this,” said George McWilliams, a Texarkana attorney representing the RNC. “I’m just glad the jury decided to set aside any political feelings they may have had to arrive at a just verdict.”

Topics Texas Agencies