SDNY COURTHOUSE,
Feb 8 –
In the case of Sarah Palin
versus New York Times and
James Bennet, on July 24, 2020
U.S. District Court for the
Southern District of New York
Judge Jed S. Rakoff held oral
arguments. Inner City Press
live tweeted them - and now
the 2022 trial, below.
On August
28, 2020 Judge Rakoff issued
an order denying summary
judgment and finding, inter
alia, that "there "there is
sufficient evidence to allow a
rational finder of fact to
find actual malice [by NYT /
Bennet] by clear &
convincing evidence." So,
trial. Inner City Press will
cover it - having previously
reported Judge Rakoff jokingly
perhaps offering that time
slot to a criminal case and
saying, Ms. Palin may just
have to wait.
It was set to
start on January 24, 2022. But
as tweeted
by Inner City Press, "Sarah
Palin v. NYT will NOT start
today. Palin has tested
positive for COVID three
times. Judge Rakoff says she
can return for trial on
February 3, unless she is
showing symptoms."
On February
3 the trial started. Inner
City Press live tweeted it,
thread here.
On February
7, after this song
things proceeded, with Inner
City Press live tweeting,
thread here.
On February
8, questioning of the NYT's
Ms. Cohn continued; Inner City
Press live tweeted, thread here:
now Sarah Palin
v. NYT trial continues
@SDNYLIVE , with Judge Jed S.
Rakoff hearing argument before
the jury comes in. Palin's
lawyers have argued for
punitive damages overnight
Judge Rakoff:
Last I remember, the party
offering evidence has the
burden to show it is relevant.
You and your able colleagues
seem to be arguing that if
there is anything helpful to
your case and Mr. Bennet
denies seeing it, it's
admissible. That's ridiculous.
Inner City Press
@innercitypress ·
Judge
Rakoff: At another break,
during his testimony, I will
allow you to put some
foundational questions to him
outside the presence of the
jury. If you can establish
more than you have so far, I
will reconsider. Inner City
Press @innercitypress ·
Now witness is
back on the stand, about grafs
and blurbs. Q: Ms. Cohn
I want to ask you again about
the conversations throughout
the day. There were such
communications throughout the
day, correct? Objection! Judge
Rakoff: Sustained. Inner City
Press @innercitypress ·
Q:
Throughout the day were you
speaking with members of your
team about the editorial,
America's Lethal Politics?
Cohn: Yes. Nick
Fox might have stepped into my
office at some point and
mentioned he had a
conversation with Elizabeth
Williamson about the piece.
Inner City Press
@innercitypress ·
Q: Do you
recall going to Mr. Bennet's
office and saying, We need to
talk? Cohn: Yes, that was
after I'd actually read the
draft. I asked, Where are we
going with this? I felt
unsure. I felt he needed to
take a look and weigh in.
Inner City Press
@innercitypress ·
Q: At 4:09
pm, you say "I'll pick up
Elizabeth," right? Cohn: Yes.
Q: Beyond Nick Fox, who was
involved? Cohn: Bob Semple.
Q: Is this the
back-field directory? Cohn:
Yes. Palin's counsel: We offer
Exhibit 148. NYT counsel: No
objection. Judge Rakoff:
Admitted. Inner City Press
@innercitypress ·
Q: So, here
you wrote, Are there signs of
mental illness? Or is it just
that anyone who commits a mass
shooting is deranged. Why?
Cohn: It's just something for
me to remember. I want to
think about this. But anyone
could comment on it. Inner
City Press @innercitypress ·
Cohn: I was
trying to think of a political
figure on the left who was
inciting violence. All I could
think of was the comedian
Kathy Griffin holding Trump's
head.
Palin's lawyer:
May I approach the witness?
With a copy of her deposition?
Judge Rakoff: Yes. Cohn: I was
thinking about the period of
time, early Tea Party, when
the discourse was coarsening
and people began to view
opponents as enemies to be
hated.
Palin's lawyer:
Do you recognize 140-F, Ms.
Cohn?
Cohn: I don't see
my name... Oh, now I do.
Then Cohn on
re-cross said that the New
York Times has a policy, even
in making a correction, of not
"repeating the error" and
that's why the correction did
not mention or apologize to
Palin
Early on
February 8, Palin's lawyers
put in a memo on their
entitlement to punitive
damages: "At the February 7,
2022 Charging Conference,
Defendants suggested certain
changes to the Court’s
proposed jury instruction on
punitive damages based on
Morsette v. “The Final Call,”
309 A.D.2d 249, 254 (1st Dep’t
2003). Specifically,
Defendants claim Plaintiff is
only entitled to punitive
damages if she proves that the
Defendants’ “sole motivation
in publishing the challenged
statements was hostility
toward and a desire to injure
the plaintiff.” See
Defendants’ Proposed Revisions
to Instruction No. 17
(provided at the Feb. 22nd
Charging Conference).
Defendants’ proposed revision
improperly seeks to limit the
grounds upon which Plaintiff
can prove her entitlement to
punitive damages and flies in
the face of well-established
law. As recognized by the
Second Circuit in DiBella v.
Hopkins, 403 F.3d 102, 122 (2d
Cir. 2005), “[u]nder New York
law, punitive damages in a
defamation case are justified
“‘to punish a person for
outrageous conduct which is
malicious, wanton, reckless,
or in willful disregard for
another's rights.’” (quoting
Prozeralik, 82 N.Y.2d at
479–80) (emphasis added); see
also Celle v. Filipino
Reporter Enterprises Inc., 209
F.3d 163 (2d Cir. 2000) (“all
of the relevant circumstances
surrounding the dispute”
should be considered in
establishing entitlement to
punitive damages)."
Back on
January 19 the New York Times
filed its proposed questions
for jurors, including "do any
of you believe that the New
York Times has a bias against
certain political parties or
issues?"Also, do you know Ross
Douthat? Andrew Sullivan?
Robert Semple?
On January 20,
Sarah Palin's lawyers filed
their proposed questions,
including "Have you followed
any recent high profile court
cases closely?" Can you say,
Ghislaine Maxwell? We'll be
there.
On January 17 -
MLK Day - the New York Times
filed a request that juror
before opening statements be
read a statement including
that "Plaintiff claims that
two statements in the
Editorial falsely communicated
to readers that she directly
caused Jared Loughner to shoot
people in Arizona in 2011."
Then, the cross-hairs. Watch
this site.
On January 11,
Judge Rakoff convened a
pre-trial session. Inner City
Press live tweeted it here.
The case is
Palin v. The New York Times
Company, 17-cv-4853-JSR
(Rakoff)
***
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