A Carter era appointee, Senior United States District Judge For the Eastern District of Kentucky, William O. Bertelsman, dismissed the $250 million defamation lawsuit filed by the family of Covington student Nick Sandmann against the Washington Post. At issue was the mis-characterization of the then 16-year-old Sandmann that he had ” instigated the confrontation and participated in “racist taunts” against the elderly man, fueling a social-media uproar” following the “March For Life” this last January.
Bertelsman ruled that the paper’s opinion was protected free speech and that statements made by Nathan Phillips at the time may have been inaccurate, but was also opinion protected by the 1st Amendment. More
Yes, opinion is protected, but the WAPO also reported what it took to be facts. The facts were untrue and defamatory, and NOT protected from libel judgment.
BTW, the suit demanded $250,000,000, not a measly $25,000,000.
Fixed it. Thanks.
Opinion is one thing. Passing it off as front page news is something else.
Besides, when does opinion get to be based on a lie and is very harmful to the person? So newspapers can do whatever they want with impunity? Didn’t Carrol Burnett’s case against The National Enquirer (I think it was) say otherwise?
I was told a story years ago. A deputy arrest somebody for disturbing the peace after that person had used vulgarity towards the deputy. The judge dismissed the case on First Amendment grounds. The judge said it was protected free speech.
As the deputy left the court room, he stopped, turned, and flipped off the judge. The judge got very irate and asked the deputy what he was doing.
The deputy replied, “Protected free speech.”
Liberals and their spawn can NEVER be trusted! At best, they can be ignored, if possible. More desirably, they can be defrocked and hounded from underserved office. But it will take resolve to make the bastards live by the rules they impose on others.
Lifetime appointments to any public office are rich fertilizer for abuse of the public (and the Constitution) by those so inclined. Elimination of that outrage is just another of the many changes that need to be made if the Nation is to survive. And Chief Justice Roberts needs some training in acknowledging reality…
Another judge who should be removed from the bench for impersonation.
I think it’s obvious that the judge is a pedophile and a recipient of bribes who immediately should be arrested.
Just my “opinion.”
Somebody ‘got to’ the Judge
Rename. Refile. Go again after some judge-shopping. Make them bleed out all their “reporter” salary money to lawyers instead.
…it’s what THEY do, so why not hoist them on their own petard…
Freedom of the fake news.
I hope they appeal, deliberate defamation and slander is not covered by free speech.
Well okay. With that ruling there should be no more defamation, libel or slander cases allowed.
Hey gossip papers, magazines and web sites, say what you want about any celebrity! Make it about this judge then let him try to sue you.
They can’t get their way through elections so the left cripples presidential directives through leftist activist judges.
This has gotten way out of hand when the nations CEO can’t get anything substantial done because of some obscure judges.
A “Carter Era” appointee? Shouldn’t that decrepit old fuk be dead by now?
So, can “we” exercise our 1st Amendment rights by talking about this goat-raping pedophile appointed by the SECOND WORSE PRESIDENT in our history (last part not conjecture)? I heard it from a credible source – which I will NOT name (1st Amendment, after all).
@Justin Case:
Are you referring to Jimmy or the judge? (-:
A “Carter Era” appointee that somehow found a bag of cash in the back seat of his unlocked car…
One of the few mistakes the brilliant founding fathers made was in giving life time tenure to judges. Human beings are far too flawed for that kind of power!
Uncle Al…BOTH!