D'Elia v. Renna [1]

Summary

Threat Type:

Lawsuit

Date:

11/01/2006

Status:

Concluded

Disposition:

Dismissed (total)

Location:

New Jersey

Verdict or Settlement Amount:

N/A

Legal Claims:

Defamation

Parties

Party Receiving Legal Threat:

Tina Renna; Patricia Quattrocchi

Type of Party:

Individual

Type of Party:

Individual

Location of Party:

New Jersey

Location of Party:

New Jersey

Legal Counsel:

Philip J. Morin III

Description

Sebastian D'Elia, director of the Office of Public Information of Union County, New Jersey, filed a lawsuit against two members of The Union County Watchdog Association after they allegedly defamed him in blog posts. Defendants Tina Renna and Patricia Quattrocchi were regular posters to the watchdog group's blog, The County Watchers [2]. According to news [3] reports [4], D'Elia took issue with a blog post titled "County Hacks are Soulless Pyschopaths," which allegedly compared him to Adolf Hitler.

Both D'Elia and the defendants moved for summary judgment in the case. After hearing oral argument on the two motions, the court granted summary judgment to the defendants on the ground that D'Elia had not provided sufficient proof of damages. The court reportedly [4] also noted that D'Elia was a public official, which meant he was subject to criticism even if it was "mean-spirited," "unflattering," and "poorly written."

Details

Web Site(s) Involved:

The County Watchers
[2]

Content Type:

Text

Publication Medium:

Blog

Subject Area:

Defamation

Court Information & Documents

Jurisdiction:

New Jersey

Source of Law:

New Jersey

Court Name:

New Jersey Superior Court, Union County

Court Type:

State

Case Number:

L -003880-06

Relevant Documents:

2006-11-03-D'Elia v. Renna Complaint.pdf [8]

2007-01-04-Renna's Answer and Counterclaim.pdf [9]

2007-01-08-D'Elia's Answer to Counterclaim.pdf [10]

2008-09-26-Renna's Brief Supporting Motion for Summary Judgment on Defamation Liability.pdf [11]

2008-11-07-D'Elia v. Renna Order Granting Defendants' Motions and Denying Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment.pdf [12]

2008-11-18-D'Elia v. Renna Stipulation of Dismissal of Counterclaim.pdf [13]

CMLP Information (Private)

Priority:

1-High

CMLP Notes:

Source: Media Bloggers Association

Comments

fix inaccuracies [14]

the judge's comments were not about criticism,she was directly referring to Renna's blog about me as being "poorly written" "unflattering" and "mean spirited."

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