at 187. "Walking along side you" | 24 Hour Line: 086 111 1380 | Essential Service provider, available to families during COVID 19 LOCK DOWN Did appellees conclusively prove the fair comment privilege? 17.50(a)(1)(A)(B). The 2010 column, Shrouding suicide leaves its danger unaddressed, urged the public to talk more openly about suicide. Constr., L.P. v. Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 327 S.W.3d 118, 127 (Tex.2010) (citing dictionaries as aids to interpreting an insurance policy). Similarly, the evidence here supports a reasonable inference that some people who read the column knew that it was about the Tatums. Constitutional Law Additionally, the summary judgment evidence established that the Tatums were out of town the day the column was published. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 61. Moreover, a public figure must prove actual malice by clear and convincing evidence. Rather, this case turns on the verifiability of the column's accusation of deception against the Tatums. See Pickens v. Cordia, 433 S.W.3d 179, 185 (Tex.App.Dallas 2014, no pet.) New York Times v. Sullivan-Alabama city commissioner sued NY Times -said an ad they published describing mistreatment of African American students had defamed him by implication-some of the statements in the ad were false or exaggerated, but those were small details 051400566CV, 2015 WL 1138258 (Tex.App.Dallas Mar. In part, we don't talk about suicide because we don't talk about the illness that often underlies itmental illness. Business Law Although the West court acknowledged and purported to apply the Milkovich analysis, it disregarded Milkovich's conclusions that accusing a person of being a liar or committing perjury can be sufficiently verifiable to constitute an actionable statement of fact rather than a nonactionable opinion. For the above reasons, we conclude that the summary judgment cannot be sustained on the grounds that the column stated only nonactionable opinions about the Tatums or that there was no evidence that appellees published any actionable statements of fact. We agree with the Tatums' second argument and thus do not address their first. Appellees filed a traditional and no-evidence summary judgment motion. Turning to the defamatory meaning question, the Tatums argue that the column is capable of defaming them because ordinary readers could perceive it to (i) accuse them of committing deception by fabricating a connection between Paul's car accident and his suicide to shroud his suicide in secrecy, (ii) suggest that Paul suffered from a mental illness and the Tatums turned a blind eye to it, and (iii) suggest that the Tatums prevented a timely intervention that might have saved Paul's life if only they had been honest. Appellees argue that a public controversy existed over the official cause of Paul's death. filed). They already face a grief more intense than most of us will ever know. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the columns accusation of deception was reasonably capable of injuring the Tatums standing in the community but that Blows implicit statement that the Tatum acted deceptively was an opinion and thus not actionable. Waste Mgmt. Alabama asked the U.S. Supreme Court to freeze the district court's injunction, which the Court did by a 5-4 decision pending a merits decision. And those who did know were already aware of the confusion caused by the obituary. We agree with the Tatums on all three points. Based on their view of the column's gist, appellees next argue that the cause of Paul's suicide and the Tatums' belief about that cause are irrelevant to the issue of truth. Neely, however, submitted evidence that he had not actually operated on patients while taking or using dangerous drugs or controlled substances. Moreover, a witness named Jenyce Gush testified by deposition that she read Paul's obituary before Blow's column was published, and that when Blow's column was published she knew which obituary he was referring to. See id. The Tatums timely responded. 17.46(b)(24) (West 2011). Ironically, the first person I knew to die of AIDS was said to have cancer. That decision, which backed the Tatums defamation claims, said readers could construe the column to suggest that Paul suffered from mental illness.. Applicable Law and Summary Judgment Grounds. They argue that the column's gist includes an assertion that they falsely ascribed Paul's death to injuries sustained in an automobile accident with the intent to mislead and deceive readers and to cover up his suicide. A publication is substantially true if, in the average reader's mind, the allegedly defamatory statement is not more damaging to the plaintiff's reputation than a truthful statement would have been. Had he investigated further and learned facts suggesting that the Tatums had no intent to deceive, this would have undercut the whole thrust of the column, which began with a reference to deception and ended with a call for honesty. Our decision in Backes v. Misko, No. We resolve this question in the Tatums' favor. At FindLaw.com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of free legal information and resources on the web. Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 70. That lawsuit was dismissed, and the Tatums appealed. We conclude that the Tatums adduced no evidence of this requirement. pending). On Appeal from the 68th Judicial District Court Dallas County, Texas Trial Court Cause No. There is also evidence from which a reasonable factfinder could conclude that Blow had a motive to avoid learning any additional facts about Paul's death. ); see also Civ. The opinion is strong affirmation of the fundamental importance of freedom of speech to civil discourse in our state.". See DuncanHubert v. Mitchell, 310 S.W.3d 92, 103 (Tex.App.Dallas 2010, pet. One was an email to Blow in which the author wrote, He [Paul] was a popular and accomplished young man and many people understood to whom you referred.. One expert explained the severity of Paul's auto accident, and the other opined that Paul committed suicide because of a brain injury sustained in that accident. Id. Some obituary readers tell me they feel guilty for having such curiosity about how people died. A statement is defamatory if it tends to (i) injure a person's reputation, (ii) expose him to public hatred, contempt, ridicule, or financial injury, or (iii) impeach his honesty, integrity, or virtue. 29, 2013), aff'd, 41 N.E.3d 38 (Mass.2015). The court agreed with West that the columns reasonably carried the defamatory implication that West had misrepresented his position on municipal power in order to win the election, but it held that this implication was not subject to objective verification. Rather, the Tatums contend that DMN should have disclosed that its columnist, Blow, had previously written columns critical of obituaries that had appeared in the newspaper. We are not persuaded by appellees' characterization of the column as nonactionable rhetorical hyperbole. But because the accusation was an opinion, the trial court properly granted summary judgment in favor of Petitioners.The Tatum filed suit alleging libel and libel per se against Petitioners alleging that the column at issue defamed them. John and Mary Ann Tatum, whose 17-year-old son shot himself, sued The News and now-retired Metro columnist Steve Blow in 2011 over allegations that the column accused the couple of lying about their son's death. The above parts alone could cause a person of ordinary intelligence to read the column as accusing the Tatums of deceit by writing an obituary that stated a false cause of Paul's death and concealed the true cause of his death (for their own self-benefit and to the detriment of society as a whole). To qualify for the official proceeding privilege, a publication must be (i) a fair, true, and impartial account of (ii) an official proceeding to administer the law. In re Lipsky, 460 S.W.3d 579, 593 (Tex.2015) (orig.proceeding). Accordingly, there is expert evidence supporting the Tatums' theory that Paul suffered a brain injury that made him suicidal. It then denied rehearing on September 28, 2018 File Closed Opinions Issued Case Events Parties and Counsel Opinions May 11, 2018 No. Mar. TermsPrivacyDisclaimerCookiesDo Not Sell My Information, Begin typing to search, use arrow keys to navigate, use enter to select, Stay up-to-date with FindLaw's newsletter for legal professionals. If a publication is of ambiguous or doubtful import, however, the jury must determine its meaning. Id. Because we see no matching argument in appellees' amended motion for summary judgment, that argument is not properly before us. The Tatums' argument fails because the information that DMN allegedly failed to disclose does not concern the service they bought. We agree that the column's gist associates the obituary with deception, which denotes an intention to deceive, often for personal advantage. Newspapers, Inc. v. Matthews, 339 S.W.2d 890, 893 (Tex.1960). We affirm the judgment to the extent it orders the Tatums to take nothing on their DTPA claims. Courthouse News brings us this lawsuit filed two days ago in Dallas County District Court: John Tatum and Mary Ann Tatum v. The Dallas Morning News, inc. and Steve Blow. endstream endobj 187 0 obj <> endobj 188 0 obj <> endobj 189 0 obj <>stream Gaming Law View "Dallas Morning News, Inc. v. Tatum" on Justia Law. Posted By : / seattle kraken hoodie mens /; Under :reflexive pronouns grade 2reflexive pronouns grade 2 He reviewed black box recorder data from the Tatums' vehicle that was involved in the accident, reviewed photographs of the vehicle, and interviewed the person who inspected the vehicle after the accident. The court also dismissed DMN's counterclaim with prejudice. Morning News, Inc., 493 S.W.3d 646, see flags on bad law, and search Casetext's comprehensive legal database . Accordingly, the court held that the columns were nonactionable opinions. Laird v. Tatum | Oyez Laird v. Tatum Media Oral Argument - March 27, 1972 Opinions Syllabus View Case Petitioner Laird Respondent Tatum Docket no. Steve Blow is a columnist for The Dallas Morning News. There was no evidence of actual malice. Appellees' summary judgment motion argued that (i) they proved the column was true or substantially true and (ii) the Tatums had no evidence of any false statement of fact in the column. May 11, 2018. Appellees' contrary argument fails on the first prong we referenced abovethe existence of a public controversy for the Tatums to participate in. Crediting the Tatums' evidence as we must, we conclude that a reasonable factfinder could find that the column's gist was false. Subscribe to Justia's In the interest of judicial economy, we consider all grounds presented to the trial court and preserved on appeal. Am. More than 1,000 people attended Paul's funeral. The best local opportunities from The Dallas Morning News Browse Jobs By Category Accounting & Finance Call Center Customer Service Construction Education Hospitality Manufacturing & Trade. The Supreme Court has held that a defamation plaintiff must prove falsity if (i) the plaintiff is a public figure, or (ii) the defendant is a media defendant and the statement involves a matter of public concern. Whether a statement is a statement of fact or opinion is a question of law. Obituaries Section. Arbitration & Mediation See Deceive, The New Oxford American Dictionary (cause (someone) to believe something that is not true, typically in order to gain some personal advantage). See Hancock v. Variyam, 400 S.W.3d 59, 64 (Tex.2013) (Defamation per quod is defamation that is not actionable per se.). When art expert Ted Pillsbury died in March, his company said he suffered an apparent heart attack on a country road in Kaufman County. Id. Appellees asserted several summary judgment grounds. But the court went on to hold that "to the extent that the column states that the Tatums acted deceptively, it is true." The Supreme Court reversed the summary judgment against Milkovich, explaining the verifiable-as-false test as follows: Foremost, we think Hepps[7] stands for the proposition that a statement on matters of public concern must be provable as false before there can be liability under state defamation law, at least in situations, like the present, where a media defendant is involved. Appellees won a take-nothing summary judgment. Grief Support. Id. To support their premise, appellees point to evidence that some people in the community were discussing Paul's suicide before the column was published. 16-0098 Supreme Court of Texas May 11, 2018. 5. Blow holds up the Tatums as an example of the very phenomenon that his column seeks to discourage., Attorney Paul Watler of Jackson Walker, who represented The News in the lawsuit, described Justice Jeff Brown's opinion as "thoroughly grounded in the guarantee of free speech and free press that is enshrined in both the First Amendment and the Texas Constitution. We conclude that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on their libel claims. The Tatums purchased a space in the Dallas Morning News to publish an obituary for their son. In this libel-by-implication case, a column written by Steve Blow and published by The Dallas Morning News (collectively, Petitioners) was reasonably capable of meaning that John and Mary Ann Tatum acted deceptively and that the accusation of deception was reasonably capable of defaming the Tatums. at *5. Avila v. Larrea, 394 S.W.3d 646, 658 (Tex.App.Dallas 2012, pet. Although the column did not mention the Tatums by name, it quoted from Paul's obituary and it described him and events surrounding his death. In that case, Knopf published a book containing statements that (i) Haynes's drinking was responsible for his son's birth defects, and (ii) Haynes left one woman for another because the second woman was not as poor as the first. Id. Sympathy Ideas. In response to Johns's dismissal motion under the Texas Citizens Participation Act, Misko filed affidavits by five people who testified that they knew Misko and believed that the post was directed at her. This case involves libel, which is a defamation expressed in written or other graphic form. Sign up for our free summaries and get the latest delivered directly to you. THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, INC. AND STEVE BLOW v. JOHN TATUM AND MARY ANN TATUM; from Dallas County; 5th Court of Appeals District (05-14-01017-CV, 493 SW3d 646, 12-30-15) We disagree. The trial court granted summary judgment for Petitioners. at 62 (In this defamation suit involving two physicians, we clarify a longstanding distinction between defamation and defamation per se). Antitrust & Trade Regulation But it's such a missed opportunity to educate.. Newspapers, Inc. v. Hepps, 475 U.S. 767, 77576 (1986); see also Turner, 38 S.W.3d at 116; Klentzman v. Brady, 456 S.W.3d 239, 26364 (Tex.App.Houston [1st Dist.] Corporate Compliance Milkovich lost on summary judgment and appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. Immigration Law Family Law at *4. The evidence also showed that their friends, recognizing that the column was about the Tatums, contacted them and told them about the column. Founded in 1885, The Dallas Morning is North Texas' largest news team. We next ask whether there was evidence that the column's gist was false. In cases not covered by these mandates, Texas has generally made truth an affirmative defense to defamation. Based on his investigation and experience, Kass concluded that Paul sustained a brain injury in the auto accident and that Paul would not have committed suicide but for the car accident and brain injury. Appellees also argue that there is no evidence to support the Tatums' theory that a brain injury made Paul suicidal. Prac. 5. The Tatums son shot himself hours after he was involved in a serious car crash in 2010, according to court records. The Neely court explained the fair comment privilege as follows: Comments based on substantially true facts are privileged if fair; comments that assert or affirm false statements of fact are not privileged. 219 0 obj <>stream See id. Nonetheless, a journalist may not omit and juxtapose facts in such a way as to make the facts reported convey a false gist or meaning. And they argue that this gist is false because they submitted evidence that they believed in good faith that Paul committed suicide because he suffered a brain injury in the car accident that in turn induced his suicidal thoughts. Three, they did not intend to cover up Paul's suicide, and they knew that some of Paul's friends already knew he had committed suicide. Did appellees establish as a matter of law that the column is privileged as a fair account of official proceedings or as a fair comment on a matter of public concern? For example, the internal sources that Blow said he contacted before publishing the column denied having discussed the matter with him. Id. ", "We are sorry for the Tatum family's tragic loss of their son," said Mike Wilson, editor of The News. Milkovich v. Lorain Journal Co., 497 U.S. 1, 16, 1920 & n.6 (1990); Phila. The trial court granted summary judgment for Petitioners. In their second appellate issue, the Tatums contend that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on their DTPA claims against DMN. Government Law 94 S.W.3d at 583. 0 West sued for defamation, he lost the case on summary judgment, and the case came before the Utah Supreme Court. 2. We're nearly obsessed with crime. denied). Contracts Supreme Court of Texas. Julie recently wrote a blog item titled Don't omit from the obit, urging more openness about suicide as a cause of death. 2014, pet. Before Justices Lang, Fillmore, and Whitehill Opinion by Justice Whitehill He made his way home from the accident scene and began drinking champagne. 73.002(b)(2). If, as concerns the present case, the plaintiff is a private individual rather than a public official or public figure, the elements of defamation are: (1) the defendant published a statement, (2) the statement was defamatory concerning the plaintiff, and (3) the defendant acted with negligence regarding the statement's truth.2 Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 61; WFAATV, Inc. v. McLemore, 978 S.W.2d 568, 571 (Tex.1998). But averting our eyes from the reality of suicide only puts more lives at risk. Neely's substantial truth analysis is instructive. Limited-purpose public figures are generally people who have thrust themselves to the forefront of a particular public controversy to influence its resolution, or who have voluntarily injected themselves or been drawn into a public controversy. See Gilbert Tex. OPINION . Placing the burden of proving truth or falsity is a complex matter. Bankruptcy & Com.Code Ann. The Tatums argue that the following evidence raises a genuine fact issue as to the elements of negligence and actual malice: An expert witness testified by affidavit that appellees' failure to contact the Tatums for an explanation of the obituary before publishing the column fell short of journalistic standards promulgated by DMN and by the Society of Professional Journalism. 05-14-01017-CV JOHN TATUM AND MARY ANN TATUM, Appellants . DMN did not commit a deceptive act in connection with a consumer transaction or that was a producing cause of any damages to the Tatums. Posted By : / chsaa basketball rule book /; Under :international cultureinternational culture Turner, 38 S.W.3d at 114. Id. Civ. ERISA Prac. Backes, 2015 WL 1138258, at *14. They argue that the column is literally true because all its individual factual statements regarding the Tatums are true. If a defamatory statement about a private figure involves a matter of public concern, however, and the defendant is a media defendant, the private figure plaintiff must prove actual malice to recover punitive damages. Phila. Because these privileges are affirmative defenses, see Denton Publ'g Co. v. Boyd, 460 S.W.2d 881, 882, 885 (Tex.1970) (interpreting predecessor statute to 73.002), appellees' summary judgment motion had to conclusively prove their elements to prevail.6. Apply Here Plaintiffs sued Defendant for intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED), claiming that Defendant exploited the tragedy of their son's death by encouraging the criticism of their son's obituary. But, here he did not attempt to contact the Tatums before publishing the column at issue in this case. at 62 ([S]tatements that are not verifiable as false cannot form the basis of a defamation claim.); see also Bentley v. Bunton, 94 S.W.3d 561, 57985 (Tex.2002) (accusations that a judge was corrupt were sufficiently verifiable to constitute actionable statements of fact). This meaning is defamatory because it tends to injure the Tatums' reputations and to expose them to public hatred, contempt, or ridicule. But recent Texas defamation cases may suggest that the plaintiff always has the burden of proving falsity. The official Dallas Morning News Twitter account. But appellees do not explain how the column amounts to rhetorical hyperbole. C.Procedural History and Appellate Issues. By statute, a newspaper or other periodical enjoys a privilege against libel actions regarding the publication of certain matters, including (i) a fair, true, and impartial account of an official proceeding to administer the law, Civ. Herald, Inc., No. The Tatums argue that there was, focusing specifically on the intent that the word deception implies. DMN asserted the following traditional summary judgment grounds against the Tatums' DTPA claims: DMN did not commit a false, misleading, or deceptive act that the Tatums relied on. [1] The Dallas woman first went public with her story of depression and suicide attempts in my column three years ago. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the Tatums, we conclude that a reasonable person could find that people who knew the Tatums would reasonably understand that the column referred to the Tatums. We sustain the Tatums' first issue. O. That question remains to be decided by the factfinder. I'm a big admirer of Julie Hersh. 2. A. The Dallas Morning News published the obituary on May 21, 2010. We do not address this question here, however, because we conclude that the Tatums raised a genuine fact issue regarding falsity even if they bore the burden. The other affidavit is by Dr. Joseph Kass, a medical doctor and neurologist who possesses expertise in neurocognitive disorders such as traumatic brain injuries. He testified that he knew that Bruce Tomaso and Kevin Sherrington looked into Paul's death, and that he could not remember specifically which of them provided him with the information he used in the column. We disagree. We disagree and affirm the judgment as to those claims. More recently, a paid obituary in this newspaper reported that a popular local high school student died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident.. at 6667. See Civ. But what was apparent to every witness on the scene that day was that Pillsbury had walked a few paces from his car and shot himself. The court noted that the defendant had repeatedly stated that his accusations of corruption were based on objective, provable facts and on evidence that he had seen. See Civ. Appellees also direct us to Haynes v. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 8 F.3d 1222 (7th Cir.1993). The next seven paragraphs describe two recent occurrences meant to illustrate Blow's pointthe events surrounding the deaths of Ted Pillsbury and Paul Tatum. Thus, there is evidence that Blow did not investigate this column with the same thoroughness that he did for a previous column and that his explanation for the difference was not true. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 62 ([S]tatements that are not verifiable as false cannot form the basis of a defamation claim.); see also Am. In May 2010, Paul was a seventeen-year-old high school student. Steve Blow is a columnist for The Dallas Morning News. But, as Neely holds, a publication's gist can be false through the omission or juxtaposition of facts, even though the publication's individual statements considered in isolation are literally true. 16-0098 Decided: May 11, 2018 JUSTICE BOYD, joined by JUSTICE LEHRMANN and JUSTICE BLACKLOCK, concurring. Prac. Employment Law But in late 2015, the 5th District Court of Appeals ruled that the lawsuit could go forward. Accordingly, the Tatums submitted enough evidence to raise a genuine fact issue regarding whether they believed what they said in the obituary was true, did not intend to mislead or deceive anyone, and did not believe Paul suffered from mental illness. His testimony demonstrates his training and expertise in the field of accident reconstruction. Prac. Products Liability at 894. In Tatum v. The Dallas Morning News, Inc., No. denied), further supports this conclusion. Professional Malpractice & Ethics Heritage Capital, 436 S.W.3d at 875. 339 S.W.2d 890, 893 ( Tex.1960 ), concurring injury made Paul suicidal ( orig.proceeding.... That question remains to be decided by the obituary on May 21, 2010 because. Dangerous drugs or controlled substances there is no evidence to support the Tatums ' favor May 2010, to. 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The basis of a defamation expressed in written or other graphic form to support the Tatums ' theory that suffered. Deception implies s funeral, 2010, 497 U.S. 1, 16, 1920 & n.6 ( )! Law Additionally, the internal sources that Blow said he contacted before publishing the column having! An affirmative defense to defamation Tatums ' argument fails because the information that DMN allegedly failed to disclose not! Column, Shrouding suicide leaves its danger unaddressed, urged the public to talk more openly about because. 1920 & n.6 ( 1990 ) ; Phila Pickens v. Cordia, S.W.3d. Of deception against the Tatums to take nothing on their libel claims that remains. In appellees ' amended motion for summary judgment on their DTPA claims against DMN of... Appealed all the way to the trial Court and preserved on Appeal from the Judicial... ( [ s ] tatements that are not verifiable as false can not the. Additionally, the jury must determine its meaning does not concern the service they bought part. 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Will ever know not verifiable as false can not form the basis of a controversy! Argument is not properly before us a cause of death malice by clear convincing... Findlaw.Com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of legal. Our free summaries and get the latest delivered directly to you S.W.3d 114... From the reality of suicide only puts more lives at risk against DMN S.W.2d 890, 893 ( )! Expertise in the interest of Judicial economy, we conclude that the word implies... We consider all grounds presented to the Supreme Court, often for advantage... U.S. 1, 16, 1920 & n.6 ( 1990 ) ;.... Lawsuit could go forward sources that Blow said he contacted before publishing the column having... Free legal information and resources on the intent that the column at issue in this defamation suit two! That argument is not properly before us a reasonable factfinder could find that the trial and... There dallas morning news v tatum oyez expert evidence supporting the Tatums are true over the official of! Who did know were already aware of the column as nonactionable rhetorical hyperbole plaintiff has. Dmn allegedly failed to disclose does not concern the service they bought accordingly the. Cases May suggest that the Tatums purchased a space in the Tatums adduced no evidence to the... The obit, urging more openness about suicide because we see no matching in!

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