Eventually, every little thing shows up on eBay, including Dr. Jack Kevorkian’s assisted suicide van. Now imagine what the seller is thinking now that eBay has pulled the listing. The online auction depot felt they had no choice but to crush the dreams of those who are in the market for “murderabilia.” Jack Finn, the seller of the ‘68 Volkswagen van, won’t even be reimbursed for his listing fees, because eBay thinks it is a parent or some other form of moral authority. Mr. Finn had hoped to take in at least $3,400 for his spring cleaning efforts, but eBay decided to get involved.
Kevorkian assisted suicide van and eBay’s moral authority
eBay has the right to set their policy, whether or not other people agree that the Jack Kevorkian assisted suicide van is an item “closely associated” with murder, as they told the AP. EBay reviewed the listing after it was brought to its attention, possibly by a user, and determined that it violated their policy. EBay told Finn that Dr. Jack’s old wheels were in violation of their “murderabilia” policy. Finn’s response, while masking shades of disappointment, was ultimately pragmatic: “I don’t run eBay, Craigslist or the world.” At least Kruse Auctions isn’t a slave to such a policy; they’ll sell it in mid-May.
Watch out for the assisted suicide van replica within the Kevorkian film
”You Don’t Know Jack,” which is now showing on HBO with Al Pacino in the title role of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, has a replica of the good doctor’s 1968 VW van. The copy is not quite as water-damaged and unsafe as the original is now, says Finn. In the eBay listing, Finn explains that “all safety systems on the automobile would have to be completely overhauled. It may move a bit under its own power, but it’s not safe.
How did Finn get the Jackmobile?
Finn allegedly bought the assisted suicide van in 1997 when he was the head honcho of a used auto parts yard. Jack Kevorkian had given the vehicle to his own auto body shop for scrap that year, with no money changing hands. Instead of scrap it, Kevorkian’s body shop must have sold it. According to Mayer Morganroth – Kevorkian’s lawyer – Jack never wanted something like this eBay auction to occur. Still, he does not intend to pursue the matter further, Morganroth told the AP.
Resources for the article
Jack Kevorkian’s assisted suicide van
http://www.newser.com/article/d9fb3bho5/citing-ban-on-murderabilia-ebay-halts-sale-of-jack-kevorkians-old-assisted-suicide-van.html
