Am. Argued January 10, 2018. 186 0 obj
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When art expert Ted Pillsbury died in March, his company said he suffered an apparent heart attack on a country road in Kaufman County. Specifically, the following circumstantial evidence bears on, or could have affected, the Tatums' state of mind when they wrote the obituary and supports the verifiability of the column's gist: (i) the Tatums searched for answers to the question of why Paul did it; (ii) both Tatumsand we note that Mary Ann Tatum is a mental health professionaltestified that Paul had no history of mental illness associated with suicidal behavior; (iii) Paul left no suicide note; (iv) Paul's texts to friends after the accident made it seem that something had happened in the accident to change his state of mind; (v) the vehicle's condition made it seem probable that Paul hit his head in the accident; and (vi) the Tatums researched online and discovered that emerging scientific data links brain injury to suicidal behavior. Prac. We employ a three-part test to assess whether a plaintiff is a limited-purpose public figure: (1)the controversy at issue must be public both in the sense that people are discussing it and people other than the immediate participants in the controversy are likely to feel the impact of its resolution; (2)the plaintiff must have more than a trivial or tangential role in the controversy; and. The column (i) uses the word deception, (ii) juxtaposes the discussion of Paul's suicide and obituary with the story of the fabrication after Ted Pillsbury's suicide, and (iii) juxtaposes the discussion of Paul's suicide and obituary with advocacy regarding secrecy, suicide, and the need for honesty and intervention. denied), further supports this conclusion. We agree with the Tatums. See DuncanHubert v. Mitchell, 310 S.W.3d 92, 103 (Tex.App.Dallas 2010, pet. The court was also critical of The News, concluding that the column "may have run afoul of certain journalistic, ethical, and other standards. at 122627. (A public controversy is not simply a matter of interest to the public; it must be a real dispute, the outcome of which affects the general public or some segment of it in an appreciable way.). In short, there must first be a controversy before it can be a public one. We determine substantial truth by assessing the publication's gist. See id. 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. Posted By : / seattle kraken hoodie mens /; Under :reflexive pronouns grade 2reflexive pronouns grade 2 We next ask whether there was evidence that the column's gist was false. About three months later, they filed an amended traditional and no-evidence summary judgment motion. Personal Injury hV]o:+~lb;-E!^ C- 17.50(a)(1)(A)(B). We construe an allegedly defamatory publication as a whole in light of the surrounding circumstances and based on how a person of ordinary intelligence would perceive it. Ironically, the first person I knew to die of AIDS was said to have cancer. Health Law Crediting the Tatums' evidence as we must, we conclude that a reasonable factfinder could find that the column's gist was false. The 2010 column, Shrouding suicide leaves its danger unaddressed, urged the public to talk more openly about suicide. Agriculture Law We do not consider the defamatory statement itself in determining whether the plaintiff is a public figure. IN THE SUPREME COURT OF TEXAS No. Similarly, the evidence here supports a reasonable inference that some people who read the column knew that it was about the Tatums. Appellees argue that the column is a fair comment on a matter of public concern, specifically society's tendency to avoid open discussion of suicide and how that leaves its dangers underestimated. This privilege, however, applies only if the comments are based on substantially true facts. In two appellate issues, the Tatums urge that the trial court erred in granting the summary judgment dismissing their libel and DTPA claims. The column's headline and opening sentence announce that deception and secrecy are the column's topics. Our decision in Backes v. Misko, No. Moved Permanently. The Tatums' first appellate issue argues that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on their libel claims. The column's gist is not simply that the Tatums omitted the fact that Paul committed suicide from the obituary. Next, specifically as to Paul's death, Blow wrote that the paid obituary said Paul died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident, but Paul's death turned out to have been a suicide. Blow continued, There was a car crash, all right, but death came from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a time of remorse afterward. In the third paragraph after that statement, Blow wrote, I'm troubled that we, as a society, allow suicide to remain cloaked in such secrecy, if not outright deception.. At issue is. Corporate Compliance Star-Telegram (Fort Worth) The Newspaper distributed in Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex counties of Collin, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Ellis, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, and Wise. This case involves libel, which is a defamation expressed in written or other graphic form. Juvenile Law More than 1,000 people attended Paul's funeral. (A publication is of and concerning the plaintiff if persons who knew and were acquainted with him understood from viewing the publication that the defamatory matter referred to him.). 73.002(b)(2). Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 70. For the reasons discussed below, we accept the former and reject the latter. of Tex., Inc. v. Tex. Stay up-to-date with how the law affects your life. All rights reserved. Neely v. Wilson, 418 S.W.3d 52, 59 (Tex.2013). At FindLaw.com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of free legal information and resources on the web. The state Supreme Court saw the column differently. at 187. In D Magazine Partners we said that the supreme court's 2000 Turner opinion suggests that lack of privilege might be an element of a defamation plaintiff's case, while its 2013 Neely opinion indicates that privilege is a defense. His testimony demonstrates his training and expertise in the field of accident reconstruction. Id. at 1019. The trial court later lifted the stay and again rendered a take-nothing summary judgment against the Tatums. 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. Id. They also sued DMN for DTPA violations. Appellees' contrary argument fails on the first prong we referenced abovethe existence of a public controversy for the Tatums to participate in. Believing that Paul's suicide was caused by a brain injury he sustained in the earlier automobile accident, the Tatums stated in the obituary that Paul died "as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident." And the gist includes an implication that the Tatums' motive for deceiving readers was to conceal that Paul had suffered from a mental illness that the Tatums failed to confront. We also conclude that the evidence raises a genuine fact issue as to actual malice. Turner, 38 S.W.3d at 114. The Dallas Morning News Access ePaper Optimized for your device. Government Contracts Calling someone a liar and accusing someone of perjury, as occurred in those cases, both implicate the person's mental state, because both liar and perjury denote the willful telling of an untruth. Even if the statements in a publication are not defamatory when taken individually, a publication can be defamatory if it creates a defamatory impression by omitting material facts or juxtaposing facts in a misleading way. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 63. at *13. 3 On June 20, 2010Father's Day, and about one month after Paul's suicidethe paper published a column by Blow entitled "Shrouding Suicide Leaves its Danger Unaddressed." 4 Milkovich lost on summary judgment and appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. Naturally, with such a well-known figure, the truth quickly came out. Government & Administrative Law Turner v. KTRK Television, Inc., 38 S.W.3d 103, 119 (Tex.2000). We draw this factual recitation from the allegations in the Tatums' live petition: The Tatums were Paul Tatum's parents. Employment Law b. Add . View "Dallas Morning News, Inc. v. Tatum" on Justia Law. Election Law Steve Blow is a columnist for The Dallas Morning News. Morbid curiosity, they call it apologetically. For this privilege to apply, however, the law requires that the comment at issue purported to be, and was, only a fair, true and impartial report of what was stated at the meeting, regardless of whether the facts under discussion at such meeting were in fact true, unless the report was made with malice. Denton Publ'g Co., 460 S.W.2d at 883. Heritage Capital, 436 S.W.3d at 875. Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 61. We reject the Tatums' second appellate issue. The evidence shows that DMN published Paul's obituary, and the Tatums do not allege that the obituary itself did not conform to their order. The Dallas Morning News is an independent paper positioned for growth. Id. As to the Tatums' first point, we agree that the column is capable of a defamatory meaning about them because a person of ordinary intelligence could read the column to accuse the Tatums of deception about the cause of Paul's death and a statement is defamatory if it impeaches a person's honesty or integrity. We agree with the Tatums' second argument and thus do not address their first. The case of Laird v. Tatum raised questions about the use of surveillance by the military and how it might affect the First. One month later, on Father's Day, June 20, 2010, DMN published a column written by Blow. Bentley, 94 S.W.3d at 591; see also N.Y. Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254, 27980 (1964). Bus. But appellees do not explain how the column amounts to rhetorical hyperbole. See id. Contracts You're all set! Smith v. Deneve, 285 S.W.3d 904, 909 (Tex.App.Dallas 2009, no pet.). Reckless disregard means that the publisher entertained serious doubts about the publication's truth or had a high degree of awareness of the publication's probable falsity. More than 1,000 people attended Paul's funeral. Heritage Capital, 436 S.W.3d at 875. Prac. Appellees make a threshold argument that the Tatums must satisfy the standard for libel per se because they did not plead or prove libel per quod or special damages. We conclude otherwise. Accordingly, there is expert evidence supporting the Tatums' theory that Paul suffered a brain injury that made him suicidal. In the ePaper section, you'll find: A digital replica of the print edition to give you all the news you need each day Additional ePaper-only bonus content, including extra comics and puzzles App.Dallas Dec. 30, 2015, pet. Prac. They state that several paragraphs separate the column's description of Paul's suicide from its discussion of mental illness. Our supreme court, however, has embraced the Milkovich verifiability test. The gist is that they stated a false cause of death, shrouded Paul's suicide in secrecy, intended to mislead and deceive the readers, and may have wanted to conceal Paul's mental illness and their own failure to intervene. (describing general-purpose public figures as those who have achieved such pervasive fame or notoriety as to be public figures for all purposes). 0
I understand why people don't include it, she told me. Appellants John and Mary Ann Tatum sued appellees Steve Blow and The Dallas Morning News (DMN) for libel regarding a column that Blow wrote and DMN published one month after the Tatums' son Paul committed suicide. There was a page break in the middle of the column, and a slightly different headline appeared over the remainder of the column when it resumed on another page: Shrouding suicide in secrecy leaves its danger unaddressed. The column, with emphasis added, stated as follows: So I guess we're down to just one form of death still considered worthy of deception. Animal / Dog Law 2. The plaintiff must also prove damages unless the defamatory statements are defamatory per se. It has received nine Pulitzer Prizes since 1986, as well. Because we conclude that the evidence raised a genuine fact issue regarding whether the column was true or substantially true regarding the Tatums, we need not decide which side had the burden of proof. 17.46(b)(24); see also Brennan v. Manning, No. Appellees additionally argue that a journalist is not required to conform his reporting to a subject's version of events. Slander is an oral defamation. Turner, 38 S.W.3d at 114. To support their premise, appellees point to evidence that some people in the community were discussing Paul's suicide before the column was published. But the Tatums must prove actual malice to recover exemplary damages if the defamatory statement involved a matter of public concern (as opposed to a public controversy) and appellees are media defendants. Civil Procedure Admiralty & Maritime Law Antitrust & Trade Regulation Id. Appellees also argue that there is no evidence to support the Tatums' theory that a brain injury made Paul suicidal. There was no evidence DMN committed a false, misleading, or deceptive act listed in 17.46(b), or that the Tatums relied on any complained of act. We long ago stated that it is the settled law of Texas, that a false statement of fact concerning a public officer, even if made in a discussion of matters of public concern, is not privileged as fair comment.. & Com.Code Ann. 418 S.W.3d at 64. 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. Before Justices Lang, Fillmore, and Whitehill Opinion by Justice Whitehill Landlord - Tenant But, after discussing a situation three months earlier in which a famous person's company falsely reported his suicide as an apparent heart attack, it did say that a recent suicide was described in an obituary as having been the result of a car accident: Thus, a threshold question is whether the Tatums presented evidence sufficient to raise a genuine fact issue as to whether people who knew the Tatums would reasonably understand that the column referred to them. Appellees also direct us to Haynes v. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 8 F.3d 1222 (7th Cir.1993). Accordingly we affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand the case to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. Tatum 's parents injury that made him suicidal several paragraphs separate the column 's gist is required... 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