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Home > Carabelli v. The Michigan Messenger

Carabelli v. The Michigan Messenger [1]

Submitted by DMLP Staff on Fri, 12/18/2009 - 17:19

Summary

Threat Type: 

Lawsuit

Date: 

10/01/2008

Status: 

Concluded

Disposition: 

Dismissed (total)

Location: 

Michigan

Verdict or Settlement Amount: 

N/A

Legal Claims: 

Defamation
James Carabelli, chairman of the Republican Party in Macomb County, Michigan, sued The Michigan Messenger, a news site owned by the Center for Independent Media, for defamation in Michigan state court in October 2008. The lawsuit revolves... read full description
Parties

Party Receiving Legal Threat: 

The Michigan Messenger; Center for Independent Media; Eartha Jane Melzer; Jefferson Morley; David Bennahum

Type of Party: 

Individual

Type of Party: 

Individual
Organization

Location of Party: 

  • Michigan

Location of Party: 

  • Michigan

Legal Counsel: 

Matthew G. Davis
Description

James Carabelli, chairman of the Republican Party in Macomb County, Michigan, sued The Michigan Messenger [2], a news site owned by the Center for Independent Media [3], for defamation in Michigan state court in October 2008. The lawsuit revolves around a September 10, 2008 article entitled "Lose your house, lose your vote," [4] written by staff reporter Eartha Jane Melzer. The lawsuit also named as defendants Melzer, Jefferson Morley, editorial director of the website, and David Bennahum, President and CEO of the Center for Independent Media.

Melzer's article discussed alleged plans on the part of Republican officials in Michigan to challenge voters based on lists of home foreclosures. It attributed the following quote to Carabelli: "We will have a list of foreclosed homes and will make sure people aren’t voting from those addresses." Carabelli denies having made this statement and the existence of any such plans. The article drew national attention and spurred a lawsuit by the Obama campaign against the Michigan Republican Party [5], which subsequently settled [6].

The Michigan Messenger stands behind the accuracy of the quotation. After the suit was filed, Jefferson Morely told the First Amendment Center [7]:

We've reviewed Eartha's phone records and e-mails to recreate what Eartha reported and how she did it. . . . This review of the record leaves no doubt that the conversation with Mr. Carabelli took place, that the question of voter challenges was discussed, that Mr. Carabelli said what he said, that Eartha reported those comments immediately and accurately to her editors, and then to readers.

Doug Preisse, an Ohio G.O.P. official, also challenged the accuracy of remarks attributed to him in Melzer's article [8]. The website issued a clarification [9] regarding Preisse's comments on September 19.

Update:

01/13/2009 - Judge ordered dismissal of the case for non-service. 

Related Links: 

  • The Michigan Messenger: Lose your house, lose your vote [4]
  • First Amendment Center: Political news site fights defamation lawsuit [7]
  • Lansing State Journal: Michigan Messenger fighting defamation lawsuit [10]
  • The Huffington Post: G.O.P. Sues Michigan Independent Media Over "Lose Your House, Lose Your Vote" Story [11]
  • Law.com: Obama Campaign Sues in Michigan Over Alleged Voter Fraud [5]
  • TPMMuckraker: MI GOP and Obama Camp. Settle Lawsuit [6]
  • MLive.com: Mich. Messenger agrees it misstated GOP comments [8]
  • The Michigan Messenger: Messenger clarifies Ohio official's remark [9]
Details

Web Site(s) Involved: 

The Michigan Messenger
[2]

Content Type: 

  • Text

Publication Medium: 

Website

Subject Area: 

  • Elections and Politics
  • Defamation
Court Information & Documents

Jurisdiction: 

  • Michigan

Source of Law: 

  • Michigan

Court Name: 

Macomb County Circuit Court

Court Type: 

State

Case Number: 

2008-004340-CZ
CMLP Information (Private)

Priority: 

1-High

Threat Source: 

RSS

CMLP Notes: 

Source: RSS first amendment center

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Source URL (modified on 08/20/2014 - 11:07pm): https://www.dmlp.org/threats/carabelli-v-michigan-messenger

Links
[1] https://www.dmlp.org/threats/carabelli-v-michigan-messenger
[2] http://michiganmessenger.com/
[3] http://newjournalist.org/
[4] http://michiganmessenger.com/4076/lose-your-house-lose-your-vote
[5] http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202424603034
[6] http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/10/mi_gop_and_obama_camp_settle_l.php
[7] http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=20658
[8] http://www.mlive.com/elections/index.ssf/2008/09/mich_messenger_agrees_it_misst.html
[9] http://michiganmessenger.com/4777/messenger-clarifies-ohio-officials-remark
[10] http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20081007/NEWS01/810070383
[11] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/m.s.-bellows/gop-sues-michigan-blog-ov_b_131710.html?page=3