The reporter's lawyer yesterday said that the reporter read the police report that states a charge of hoax devices. He called the courthouse, but does not provide any specific source from the courthouse that told him attempt to manufacture an explosive device.
Yes. But the information published was, in the end, correct. His information was correct.
I understand your reputation took an unfair hit, David. And it is hard to recover from injuries to reputations. It is just not always possible to support a defamation claim.
You can sit down with an attorney in your area to explore your options but suing the reporter or newspaper or the source of the reporter's information does not seem to be one of those options at this point.
You perhaps could ask the editor of the paper to update the story and publish the case disposition. The problem with this is that it will bring last summer's story to readers' minds again and this is not always a good thing. Sometimes it is best to let the story fade. People have short memories.
Discuss it with a lawyer in your area.