Judge tells Devin Nunes' family they have to have evidence of false reporting to sue for defamation

[catbyte]

May 13, 2020

By Sarah K. Burris

Rep. Devin Nunes’ (R-CA) family had an awkward moment in court this week when their defamation lawsuit against Esquire went awry. Defamation is when you knowingly and falsely attack someone. In this case, the U.S. District Judge C.J. Williams had a hard time finding the false information.

According to the Courthouse News Service, Judge Williams, an appointee from President Donald Trump, issued a 20-page ruling that took issue with the original complaint from the Nunes family. He explained that the family has failed to specify how the allegedly defamatory Esquire magazine article was inaccurate.

The story, written by Ryan Lizza, revealed that the Nunes farm actually moved from the congressman’s district years ago and they’re now operating out of Iowa. The story became a major talking point in the last election, because Nunes claims that he is a dairy farmer, but Lizza reported that the Nunes dairy farm was halfway across the country from where Nunes was running for Congress.

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The Congressman is also suing a Twitter account @DevinCow claiming to be a cow from the Nunes herd. The parody account has poked fun at the Congressman since it was revealed his family moved away from the Congressman. According to the court filing in that case, the cow could not comply with a subpoena because cows do not have thumbs.

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https://www.rawstory.com/2020/05/judge-tells-devin-nunes-family-they-have-to-have-evidence-of-false-reporting-to-sue-for-defamation/
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It looks like they're a whole gaggle of dumbasses.

[lame54]

1. Yet, he keeps winning his seat

[procon]

2. He can't prove the story is inaccurate.

So what's his next dumbass move to prove he's smarter than a cow? That could be too high a bar for him

[coti]

3. Normally, it's the other way around- private individuals only have to prove they were damaged by a

negative allegation, and then "truth" becomes an affirmative defense that itself must be proved by the defendant. That's what makes defamation suits so costly to defendants and tools for harassment.

However, Nunes is a public figure. The standard of proof for defamation of public figures is extremely high- much, much higher than for private individuals- and it makes sense that the first (but not only) thing he would have to do to prove his case is show that whatever was said wasn't true.

[MFGsunny]

4. Nunes is having soooooo many cows lately ... so much LOSING! n/t

[rsdsharp]

9. The standard in a defamation case by a public figure

is that a false statement is made by the defendant knowing the statement to be false, or with reckless disregard as to the truth or falsity of the statement.

[abqtommy]

5. Hey, Devin, I think it really helps to go into court with a lawyer that actually graduated from law

school. I don't doubt that your cow could do a better job...

[Volaris]

10. Seriously. What lawyer goes into court with that?

My TRAFFIC LAWYER would have told me to get the fuck out of his office if I had walked in with that lol. Know why?

He's a traffic atty. He actually GOES TO COURT, and so has a pretty good sense for what kind of bullshit you can get away with in front of a judge, AND WHAT YOU CANT lol.

[dmr]

6. Am I understanding this correctly?

Nunes is representing a district that he does not live in?

If so, that's not legal. Why are they letting him get away with that? For many reasons, I'd like to see him get his comeuppance.

Or, did I misread this post?

[catbyte]

7. He lives in California, but his much ballyhooed dairy farm is in Iowa. He keeps billing

himself as a "California dairy farmer" but they've been in Iowa for years. His relatives who actually run the farm are in Iowa, not little devin.

[dmr]

8. Oh, ok, thank you

I appreciate the explanation. For the longest time, I've heard references to this, but never understood.

He's such a snake. He fits right in with Trump.

[Gothmog]

11. This will be fun to watch

[Celerity]

12. bellend

[Hermit-The-Prog]

13. That explains the problem very well.