(AllHipHop News) Anthony Ryan Leslie’s decision to use a NYPD detective’s voicemail on his song “Joan of Arc” may land the singer/rapper in court. Detective Luis Mortimer is suing Leslie for violating his civil rights by including the message on the track according to the New York Post.
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The incident started when Leslie’s supermodel ex-girlfriend, Nicole Trunfio, called police in 2011 because Leslie allegedly would not stop calling her and knocking at her door.
Detective Mortimer left a voice message for Leslie asking him to contact the officer about the matter. That message was then added to “Joan or Arc”. Mortimer claims he did not find out that his voicemail message was sampled on the song until a few months ago.
“The song has caused him embarrassment and has damaged his credibility as a detective,” said Mortimer’s attorney Monica Kipiniak.
“[‘Joan of Arc’] is actually based on a personal experience that I went through over that week,” Leslie told MTV in 2011. “Maybe in certain moments in life you want to sing something. But when you’re upset sometimes or when you really want to get your point across, you don’t want to sing to someone, you want to directly let them know what’s going on and that’s what the ‘Joan of Arc’ record is about.”
The Mortimer/Leslie lawsuit was filed in Manhattan Supreme Court. Mortimer is seeking unspecified damages in the case.
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Listen to Ryan Leslie’s “Joan of Arc” below.