• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

Defamation by libel -- my son

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

Status
Not open for further replies.

Thomasthefree

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Oklahoma

My son has repeatedly posted in public forums, book reviews, e-mails and on-line newspapers a claim that I molested a grandchild. However, the accusation is untrue and my claim of innocence is supported by a detective's investigation, a district attorney's report, a polygraph with a 99.9% result, a total lack of any evidence and a complete absence of any history of such a thing. My son posted the claims on Amazon.com in a review of one of my books. He also posted the claims in a comment in The Daily Oklahoman, the state's largest newspaper. Recently, with the release of my new book, he sent a note -- e-mail -- to a number of my contacts, including my literary agent and my publisher, and again made his claim. His earlier comments in the Daily Oklahoman played a significant role in my supervisor's decision to ask me to take early retirement. I am a former chief of staff for AT&T. I am not a full-time writer, but the financial impact of losing a six-figure job has been enormous. Russell is determined now, it appears, to make it difficult to replace the income, targeting my new book with his accusations.

I have met with him before and I have asked him in person and through e-mail to stop the libelous harassment and told him if he did not, I would have to sue. I do not want to sue, as he is my son and I always have hope for reconciliation. However, he has been consistent and relentless and has given no indication he intends to stop.

Is there anything I can do short of suing for libel? I was hoping arbitration in this type of case might be possible.
 


aldaron

Member
Wait till the lawyers chime in. Is he stating facts ie. you were arrested for child molestation, you were investigated for child molestation, you were accused of child molestation etc. Or is he just stating opinions?
 

Thomasthefree

Junior Member
I was accused. The police department held interviews with myself, my wife, the granddaughter (who was under three at the time) and her parents. It was determined almost immediately there was no cause for concern and there was no further investigation. The DA agreed and nothing was pursued. I voluntarily submitted to the polygraph with the most reputable firm in the state in hopes that it would help relieve all suspicions. There were never any charges of any kind.

The issue arises in part because of my son's anger at finding out I had struggled with homosexuality, something he detests. My wife and I worked through that issue with counseling and it is no longer an issue. However, Russell refuses to back off and has caused considerable harm to my reputation and finances.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Hot Topic

Senior Member
I felt some sympathy for you until I read the last part of your post, which is not only difficult to believe, but comes off as an attempt to get free publicity for your work.
 

quincy

Senior Member
It does sound suspiciously like an ad. ;)

Thom, it sounds as if you have been experiencing problems with your son for some time now. Because your son has not responded in a positive fashion to your personal pleas in the past, I am not sure mediation or arbitration will be a successful way to settle your dispute with him now (although these are certainly options you can consider if you are not looking for an award of punitive damages or high monetary compensation).

And, if you were not compelled to sue your son for defamation when he jeopardized your job with AT&T and essentially forced an early retirement, I imagine your son believes you will not take legal action against him now. A cease and desist letter from an attorney that threatens legal action, therefore, will probably be of no benefit.

Very simply, you have shown your son that he has no reason to stop making defamatory comments about you.

If you decide to sue him for defamation, which may actually make him sit up and take notice, you have one year from the date of first publication of the defamatory material. Because of this one year statute of limitations period, you may have lost the opportunity to bring legal action against him for any statements he made about you in the Daily Oklahoman (I am a bit surprised the newspaper allowed defamatory material to be published in the first place).

But, if the emails are recent, those can potentially be used as the basis for a defamation suit (depending on their content), as can, potentially, any recent forum postings and book review comments. However you will need an attorney to review all of what has been published about you, to determine if you do, in fact, have an action worth pursuing.

A possible complication is that, because your son has repeatedly defamed you over a period of time, I am not sure you can show additional reputational injury has resulted from the more recent postings and emails. This, too, is something best discussed with an attorney in your area who can review all of the facts.

Something else to consider with any lawsuit you consider is that pursuing a defamation lawsuit against your son may harm the sale of your "God" books and result in further harm to your reputation - although I imagine if God was there when your children were born and was there when your children turned away from you, God will be with you in court.

To locate defamation attorneys and attorney mediators and arbitrators in your area, you can go to the website home of the Oklahoma Bar Association: http://okbar.org. For mediators and arbitrators, click on "alternate dispute resolution" for resources in your area.

Good luck with your son and your book sales.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top