Nicholas Sandmann settles lawsuit against The Washington Post
“Today, I turned 18 & WaPo settled my lawsuit.”
Nicholas Sandmann has sued several major media outlets over reporting on the incident in which a Native American activist confronted Sandmann.
We previously reported that CNN settled with Sandmann.
A judge previously dismissed a lawsuit against The Washington Post, but along with the suits against CNN and NBC, it was reopened. Judge Reopens Nicholas Sandmann lawsuit against Washington Post.
Now Sandmann just announced on Twitter that The Washington Post has settled with him.
On 2/19/19, I filed $250M defamation lawsuit against Washington Post. Today, I turned 18 & WaPo settled my lawsuit. Thanks to @ToddMcMurtry & @LLinWood for their advocacy. Thanks to my family & millions of you who have stood your ground by supporting me. I still have more to do.
— Nicholas Sandmann (@N1ckSandmann) July 24, 2020
We have settled with WAPO and CNN.
The fight isn’t over. 2 down. 6 to go.
Don’t hold your breath @jack.
— Nicholas Sandmann (@N1ckSandmann) July 24, 2020
https://twitter.com/LLinWood/status/1286676149989445638
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Comments
This is a spot of bright news. WTG, Nick!
With deference to Professor Jacobson, there is a legal claim here. The claim that Sandman blocked Phillips can be construed as a criminal assault. In most States accusing someone of a crime constitutes Defamation Per Se. Repeating such allegations as fact without the ordinary diligence customary in the news profession creates a claim that should survive a Motion to Dismiss even under twombly iqbal rules.
“The claim that Sandman blocked Phillips can be construed as a criminal assault”
What? I want what you are smoking….
Assault by definition requires an active action. Standing still in a public place is not an action it is a passive presence.It is up to the person moving to avoid the person standing as they are already occupying the disputed space.
Your unseemly words demonstrate that you have utterly failed to grasp the legal issues at play here. If Sandmann were guilty of assault or any other criminal conduct related to blocking, he would have no defamation claim based on those utterances. The falsity of those utterance and the nexus to criminal conduct give rise to a claim of per se defamation.
That is remarkably disingenuous: Sandmann was not blocking anyone’s progress down a street or sidewalk. He was standing with a group of students waiting for their bus. He and his friends were minding their own business when the black racists began to abuse them, and then when the Native American grifter walked up to them banging on his drum.
Well obviously wapoop’s lawyers grasped the legal mumbo jumbo. They folded like a cheap suit when they saw what their hole card was and how badly they’d get beaten if they stayed in the game.
That depends. Under NM law, for instance, Assault consists of either:
A. an attempt to commit a battery upon the person of another;
B. any unlawful act, threat or menacing conduct which causes another person to reasonably believe that he is in danger of receiving an immediate battery; or
C. the use of insulting language toward another impugning his honor, delicacy or reputation.
https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/2011/chapter30/article3/section30-3-1/
Battery is the actual physical action while assault is the “threat”.
StarRide
You bring up a good point: Basic rules of the road, Right-of-Way 101 stuff, right there.
With deference to your disabilities, other than within the noxious fumes wafting around amongst your pea brain’s off-gassing, what other evidence exists that Sandmann blocked the cigar store escapee?
Max, I think you missed the point.
The media sharks, in their rush to villify, CLAIMED that Sandmann blocked Phillips way. In other words, the original poster is saying that the papers CLAIMED de facto assault on Phillips by Sandmann. He is saying that gives rise to more legal recourse than the original civil suit.
As you can see, your theory isn’t holding any water.
They’re paying. Hard.
Excellent news to start the day. Keep fighting Nick.
I’d love to know the amount of the settlement!
a few million shares of Amazon stock would be a down payment
Ironic that a Sandman should be waking up the Journalistic profession to their sleeping on the job.
They learned NOTHING. It’s only gotten worse.
It’s not about the money: they’re a bottomless deep pocket.
Remember: this is about the grand prize: looting the United States. What’s a few billion here or there from soros and company as an investment? So far, their investments in the destruction and takeover of the US have paid off brilliantly.
The GOP needs to be destroyed and immediately replaced by the Trump Party.
Make them pay, again and again.
Oberlin & $44M+
When that case is finally settled, whoa boy!
CNN and WaPo did learn from Oberlin, and that is why Nick got a settlement with no discovery. All of these groups have been living inside of their own little bulletproof bubbles. And then Lee Plakas shows up with a handful of Kryptonite and suddenly it is a completely different ballgame. What Oberlin hasn’t yet figured out is that the longer this goes on, that more, not fewer, people are going to learn about their pretty despicable behavior. Oberlin continuing the legal process to salvage their reputation has all of the logic of “the beatings will continue until morale improves.” It isn’t like the multi-million dollars spent on lawyers is either getting smaller or going away. Nick owes a big debt of gratitude to the Gibsons for really paving the way here.
I imagine CNN and WaPo settled this because they want the gray area of Sullivan – the “public figure” test – to continue to be fuzzy. No one in the media wants Sullivan to be locked down by the courts.
Joy Reid, in her “I made you a Public Figure here so now you have to prove actual malice, also here” argument isn’t nearly that smart.
My guess is that CNN and WaPo settled for significant amounts of money to avoid discovery, which would’ve uncovered the network of people behind the smears.
We need to change the law so “professional” news people are held to a higher standard. There are a set of good practices that every professional news person should be required to follow and if they fail to follow these practices they should be susceptible to lawsuits with a lower standard of proof required than otherwise. CNN could be successfully sued by the President for their lies because they didn’t follow standard reporting practices, like not have more than one source for a story.
The problem with these settlements is the “Non Disclosure Agreements” (or, as the media call them, “gag orders” “hush money” etc). Though I don’t particularly care how much money changed hands, I do care IF money changed hands. In other words was there some financial accountability for the defamation? Some admission of liability by the Post?
We don’t know. We don’t know if it was just dropped for costs.
The public supported Sandmann and we deserve to know whether the media paid a price. So far we know nothing, either for the Post or CNN.
To me, without more information, this is an unsatisfactory conclusion.
Do victims of the Rioters have standing to sue the inciting MSM?
WATCH: Local Chicago residents praise President Trump’s decision to send in federal law enforcement officers to stop the violence.
“I give it a thumbs up, because of the violence that’s continuing day in and day out…like we’re in a war zone.”
https://mobile.twitter.com/TrumpWarRoom/status/1286334360157933570
Let me explain why the first two settlements are very bad news to the remaining plaintiffs: CNN and WaPo (who may have settled on the cheap) are funding the remaining litigation costs against the remaining defendants. This is an excellent judicial weapon used against multiple defendants in civil lawsuits.
Happy birthday, Mr. Sandman!
In more good news Michael Avenatti’s largest civil verdict was thrown out by 9th circuit.
‘What had Avenatti done wrong??? In a STUNNING BIT OF POTENTIAL MALPRACTICE, Avenatti had taken a class-action case to trial with a Class Representative Plaintiff who had not been damaged — Bahamas Surgical Center had never purchased any the KCC manufactured gowns at issue.”
Loser……
Enter Sandmann.
Heh.
When I turned 18 I went to a bar to celebrate being legal. This young man has a bright future.. Bless and keep him.
So professor ,
Based on the going rate , how much did he get
Come on Harvard where his acceptance??
Why in the world would he want to go to that cesspool of wokism?
True. Looks like he’s getting a better education than Harvard could ever give him.
Great news! I hope he lives long and well. He could share his blessings by investing in strong, ethical small businesses.
God Bless America!
Happy Birthday, Nick!
We’re double celebrating with you!
I hope he invests some in a conservative media outlet.
Hey Cuz Nick,
gimme a call bruh!!
🙂
He and Kyle Kashuv should hook up and start a chain of gun stores and conservative swag/apparel sales.
just to piss people off.
Whatever. Sandmann and his laywer(s) were just paid off to shut-up and go away. I doubt the Washington Post has learned a thing and simply considers the minimal payout to be just the cost of doing business. Too bad that. Was hoping Sandmann was going to take them to the cleaners and teach them a lesson. Guess that ain’t happening now.
He taught them a lesson. Don’t beat on your drum when Sandmann passes by.
Mr. Sandmann’s thanking his “millions” of supporters was a nice finesse of the non disclosure agreement. Not an exact number but let’s everyone know he did well.
So happy for you and your family. I’m sure this was a very hard thing to go though but vindication is sweet.
Years from now this will all be forgotten and Nick Sandman will still be a very rich, rich, man.
I need to send my son on more school trips.
Now that Nick is set financially, we need a couple of these defendants to go the Oberlin route and open themselves up to discovery. It would be wonderful if despite the best efforts of the NDA that a pattern of collusion between some or all of the involved parties could emerge from one of the smaller players.
Hopefully it cost WaPo a pretty penny.