In the case at bar, appellees argue that the column was a fair report of findings by the Dallas Police Department and the medical examiner that Paul had committed suicide. 219 0 obj <>stream We agree with the Tatums. He was born on January 12, 1953 to Albert Tatum and . Finally, appellees cite West v. Thomson Newspapers, 872 P.2d 999 (Utah 1994). Intellectual Property That appeal is also being decided today, John Tatum and Mary Ann Tatum v. Julie Hersh, No. 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. We thus conclude that the Tatums pled claims for both libel per quod and libel per se. He was an excellent and popular student, an outstanding athlete, and had no history of mental illness. Appellees' contrary argument fails on the first prong we referenced abovethe existence of a public controversy for the Tatums to participate in. The Tatums argue that an accusation of deception is verifiable and therefore actionable, while appellees argue that it is not. The Tatums son shot himself hours after he was involved in a serious car crash in 2010, according to court records. I'm troubled that we, as a society, allow suicide to remain cloaked in such secrecy, if not outright deception. 3. at 6667. Commercial Law The Tatums argue that appellees bear the burden of proof on truth or substantial truth, so the no-evidence ground is invalid. There was also evidence that Blow did not adhere to his usual practice of investigation when he wrote the column. 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. The Tatums purchased a space in the Dallas Morning News to publish an obituary for their son. dallas morning news v tatum oyezcash cars for sale memphis. 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. Blow explained that he acted differently in investigating this column because he had been told that Paul's family did not want to discuss the matter. 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 Civ. at 47. Morning News, Inc., 493 S.W.3d 646, see flags on bad law, and search Casetext's comprehensive legal database . 5. We are unpersuaded by appellees' contrary arguments. Texas Supreme Court 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. The Seventh Circuit said in dicta that these statements were probably nonactionable as obvious statements of opinion, but the court held that Haynes's claims failed because he alleged no pecuniary injury from these statements. 1. Rather, this case turns on the verifiability of the column's accusation of deception against the Tatums. They state that several paragraphs separate the column's description of Paul's suicide from its discussion of mental illness. That question remains to be decided by the factfinder. The trial court granted Defendant's motion to dismiss Plaintiffs' action under the Texas Citizens Participation Act. The plaintiff must also prove damages unless the defamatory statements are defamatory per se. A three-judge district court agreed with the challengers that the map likely violated Section 2 of the VRA, granting a preliminary injunction that ordered the state to draw a new map. I think the need to know is wired deeply in us. 05-14-01017-CV JOHN TATUM AND MARY ANN TATUM, Appellants . The column describes Paul's obituary and death immediately after it describes the fabricated cause of death that was advanced after Ted Pillsbury's suicide. at 66. Agriculture Law c.Did the Tatums raise a genuine fact issue as to negligence and actual malice? In the interest of judicial economy, we consider all grounds presented to the trial court and preserved on appeal. O. 5. Avila v. Larrea, 394 S.W.3d 646, 658 (Tex.App.Dallas 2012, pet. And for us, there the matter ended. 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. Prac. We affirm the judgment to the extent it orders the Tatums to take nothing on their DTPA claims. This meaning is defamatory because it tends to injure the Tatums' reputations and to expose them to public hatred, contempt, or ridicule. FindLaw.com Free, trusted legal information for consumers and legal professionals, SuperLawyers.com Directory of U.S. attorneys with the exclusive Super Lawyers rating, Abogado.com The #1 Spanish-language legal website for consumers, LawInfo.com Nationwide attorney directory and legal consumer resources. The column purported to support this gist with the factual assertion that Paul committed suicide out of remorse, implicitly calling the obituary's statement that Paul died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident a lie. But it's such a missed opportunity to educate.. 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. at *13. Appellees, however, cite several cases from other jurisdictions to support their argument that the column's gist is an unverifiable opinion. Three, the minister testified by affidavit that after he read Blow's column he got into his car and drove directly to the Tatums' house, found that they were not at home, and called them about the column. 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). Copyright Appellees also argue that there is no evidence to support the Tatums' theory that a brain injury made Paul suicidal. The Tatums argue that [t]he false gist of the Column is that [they] dishonestly characterized their son's death in the Obituary as a means to shroud his suicide in secrecy. The first question is whether an ordinarily intelligent person could construe the column as conveying that gist. The Tatums also filed copies of a number of emails bearing on the subject. Backes, 2015 WL 1138258, at *14. Products Liability Dist., 858 S.W.2d 337, 341 (Tex.1993) (A motion [for summary judgment] must stand or fall on the grounds expressly presented in the motion.). 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. What is the column's gist regarding the Tatums? Do you think that might be important for parents to understand? 13, 2015, pet. Learn more about FindLaws newsletters, including our terms of use and privacy policy. Civil Rights We reject the Tatums' second appellate issue. There is thus some evidence from which a reasonable factfinder could find negligence's first prongthat appellees should have known of the defamatory statement's falsity, but failed to use reasonable care to ascertain the truth of the column's gist. 29, 2013), aff'd, 41 N.E.3d 38 (Mass.2015). Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 70. Id. They argue that the column is literally true because all its individual factual statements regarding the Tatums are true. I'm a big admirer of Julie Hersh. %%EOF at 21. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google. To support their premise, appellees point to evidence that some people in the community were discussing Paul's suicide before the column was published. 17.46(b)(24); see also Brennan v. Manning, No. Sysco Food Servs., Inc. v. Trapnell, 890 S.W.2d 796, 800 (Tex.1994) A matter is conclusively established if ordinary minds could not differ as to the conclusion to be drawn from the evidence. In re Estate of Hendler, 316 S.W.3d 703, 707 (Tex.App.Dallas 2010, no pet.). Id. We agree with the Tatums. (quoting Bell Publ'g Co. v. Garrett Eng'g Co., 170 S.W.2d 197, 204 (Tex.1943)). The Dallas Morning News Homepage. 497 U.S. at 1921. And, for a matter to be a public controversy, its resolution must affect people beyond its immediate participants. Whether a publication is capable of a defamatory meaning is initially a question for the court. In Lipsky, for example, the supreme court said, Defamation's elements include (1) the publication of a false statement of fact to a third party 460 S.W.3d at 593 (emphasis added). But the court went on to hold that "to the extent that the column states that the Tatums acted deceptively, it is true." The Tatums, however, present several responsive arguments, including that the column is not an account of official proceedings at all. See Waste Mgmt. Listen, the last thing I want to do is put guilt on the family of suicide victims. In addition to their libel claims, the Tatums also asserted DTPA claims against DMN. 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. But I don't think we should feel embarrassment at all. at 60. a. A reasonable juror could conclude that Blow was not honest when he testified about the sources of his information about Paul's death. Am. at 571; see also Einhorn v. LaChance, 823 S.W.2d 405, 411 (Tex.App.Houston [1st Dist.] I think it's part of our survival mechanism. We recently cited Lipsky and placed the burden of proving falsity on the plaintiff in a libel case involving the Texas Citizens Participation Act, Civ. Landlord - Tenant 2014, pet. New Times, Inc. v. Isaacks, 146 S.W.3d 144, 157 (Tex.2004). Id. We agree with the Tatums. He made his way home from the accident scene and began drinking champagne. But a topic is not a public controversy merely because some people are talking about it: A general concern or interest will not suffice. According to the court, the Tatums chose the wording of the obituary to reflect their conviction that Pauls suicide resulted from suicidal ideation arising from a brain injury [sustained in the car crash] rather than from any undiagnosed mental illness.. The Tatums' attorney, Joe Sibley, said he could not comment since The News was a party to the lawsuit. Appellees also argue on appeal that any libel per quod claim fails because the Tatums did not plead or prove special damages. Austin v. Inet Techs., Inc., 118 S.W.3d 491, 496 (Tex.App.Dallas 2003, no pet.). See id. More than 1,000 people attended Paul's funeral. Prac. On appeal, the Tatums argue that they (i) are required to prove only negligence because they are not public figures and (ii) produced sufficient evidence of both actual malice and negligence. at 72. At FindLaw.com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of free legal information and resources on the web. From the people we hire to the way we work, let them tell you how we are different. The Tatums' response relied on the following evidence: One, John Tatum testified by affidavit that his friend Lee Simpson called to inform him about the column the day it was published. In their second appellate issue, the Tatums contend that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on their DTPA claims against DMN. at *4. Obituaries Section. We determine substantial truth by assessing the publication's gist. See id. at *5. of Tex., Inc., 434 S.W.3d at 15657. But in late 2015, the 5th District Court of Appeals ruled that the lawsuit could go forward. We agree that the column's gist associates the obituary with deception, which denotes an intention to deceive, often for personal advantage. Fifth District of Texas at Dallas . 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