Hobbs v. Pasdar [1]

Terry Hobbs sued Dixie Chicks singer Natalie Maines and her band mates in Arkansas state court for defamation, false light, and intentional infliction of emotional distress after Maines published a open letter on the band's website [2] and MySpace blog [3] that allegedly "accused [Hobbs] of committing the murder of Steve Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore." Compl. ¶ 15 [4].

In the letter, Maines (who was sued under her married name, Natalie Pasdar) encouraged readers to support the movement to free the so-called "West Memphis Three" -- Damien Echols, Jesse Misskelley, and Jason Baldwin –-three teenagers who were convicted of murdering three eight-year-old boys in 1994. The underlying story is chronicled in the HBO documentaries, Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills [5] and Paradise Lost 2: Revelations [6], which cast doubt on the guilt of the three teenagers.

In the letter, a copy of which is attached as an exhibit to the complaint [4], Maines claimed that DNA evidence from the crime scene and other evidence linked Hobbs to the murders rather than Echols, Misskelley, and Baldwin. In so doing, she appears to have relied on Echols's petition for a writ of habeus corpus [7] challenging his conviction. The complaint also alleges that Maines made defamatory statements at a "Free the West Memphis Three" rally.

Maines and her co-defendants removed the case to Arkansas federal court in January 2009. In their answer [8], Maines and the Dixie Chicks assert the fair report privilege [9] as an affirmative defense, claiming that "[a]ll statements Defendants allegedly made were part of an official report and/or a public meeting."

UPDATE

7/20/09 - Hobbs filed a motion for partial summary judgment.

8/21/09 - Pasdar filed a motion for summary judgment.

8/24/09 - Maquire, Robison and Dixie Chicks filed a motion for summary judgment, adopting the arguments made by Pasdar.

12/01/09 - The court granted summary judgment to Pasdar, Maquire, Robison, and Dixie Chicks and dismissed the case with prejudice.

04/19/10 - Press accounts report [10] that the court ordered Hobbs to pay to Maines $17,590 to cover her legal fees.