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Judge Says Covington Student Can Sue The Washington Post For Defamation

A federal judge in Kentucky will allow a $250 million defamation lawsuit against the Washington Post to move forward, with a slightly narrower focus. U.S. District Judge William Bertelsman partially reversed his July decision and will allow the legal team for Nicholas Sandmann to challenge three of the 33 defamatory statements they highlighted in their lawsuit.

Sandmann filed the lawsuit against the Washington Post after a confrontation between the teen and Omaha Nation elder Nathan Phillips made national headlines. Sandmann and his classmates from Covington Catholic High School were in Washington D.C. to attend the March for Life and were waiting for their bus when Phillips approached the group. Sandmann was recorded staring down Phillips while he banged a drum, and the media portrayed Sandmann and his classmates as racists who instigated the confrontation and blocked Phillips from leaving the area.

Video recorded prior to the confrontation showed that Phillips walked over to the students and that they did not prevent him from leaving. The judge ruled that three statements that claimed Sandmann blocked Phillips' path should be reviewed by the court.

"The Court will adhere to its previous rulings as they pertain to these statements except Statements 10, 11, and 33, to the extent that these three statements state that plaintiff 'blocked' Nathan Phillips and 'would not allow him to retreat,'" Judge Bertelsman wrote. "Suffice to say that the Court has given this matter careful review and concludes that 'justice requires' that discovery be had regarding these statements and their context. The Court will then consider them anew on summary judgment."

Todd McMurtry, who is representing the Sandmann family in the lawsuit, praised the judge's ruling and said the decision bodes well for two other lawsuits the family has filed against CNN and NBC. 

"The Sandmann family and our legal team are grateful that Judge Bertelsman has allowed the case to proceed," McMurtry said in an emailed statement to the Washington Times. "The Court's ruling preserves the heart of the Nicholas Sandmann's claims. We can consider this a huge victory and look forward to initiating discovery against the Washington Post."


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