dallas morning news v tatum oyez

All rights reserved. Securities Law 05-14-01017-CV, 2015 WL 9582903, at *5 (Tex. In this context, negligence has two prongs: (1) the publisher knew or should have known that the defamatory statement was false, and (2) the factual misstatement's content was such that it would warn a reasonably prudent editor or broadcaster of its defamatory potential. The Dallas Morning News Homepage. The court noted that the defendant had repeatedly stated that his accusations of corruption were based on objective, provable facts and on evidence that he had seen. We agree with the Tatums' second argument and thus do not address their first. endstream endobj 187 0 obj <> endobj 188 0 obj <> endobj 189 0 obj <>stream Labor & Employment Law Blow testified that he did not review any documents regarding Paul's death or the car accident earlier that night, did not interview anyone with the Dallas Police Department or the medical examiner's office, and did not attempt to contact the Tatums before drafting the column. We agree with the Tatums. A. The Dallas Morning News Access ePaper Optimized for your device. But recent Texas defamation cases may suggest that the plaintiff always has the burden of proving falsity. Reckless disregard means that the publisher entertained serious doubts about the publication's truth or had a high degree of awareness of the publication's probable falsity. Am. Landlord - Tenant Find an Obituary. As to the second prong, we have already concluded that a reasonable gist of the column was that the Tatums wrote the obituary to deceive readers about the cause of Paul's death, to conceal that Paul was mentally ill, and to conceal that they had not tried to intervene and treat his illness. 5. at 187. In short, there must first be a controversy before it can be a public one. Banking Backes, 2015 WL 1138258, at *14. Stay up-to-date with how the law affects your life. denied), further supports this conclusion. b. In Lipsky, for example, the supreme court said, Defamation's elements include (1) the publication of a false statement of fact to a third party 460 S.W.3d at 593 (emphasis added). at 64. It does not mention those proceedings, nor does it report any statements or findings made in the course of those proceedings. 73.002(b)(2). The column was true or substantially true. In this libel-by-implication case, a column written by Steve Blow and published by The Dallas Morning News (collectively, Petitioners) was reasonably capable of meaning that John and Mary Ann Tatum acted deceptively and that the accusation of deception was reasonably capable of defaming the Tatums. He reviewed black box recorder data from the Tatums' vehicle that was involved in the accident, reviewed photographs of the vehicle, and interviewed the person who inspected the vehicle after the accident. Alabama asked the U.S. Supreme Court to freeze the district court's injunction, which the Court did by a 5-4 decision pending a merits decision. When art expert Ted Pillsbury died in March, his company said he suffered an apparent heart attack on a country road in Kaufman County. The Supreme Court reversed the summary judgment against Milkovich, explaining the verifiable-as-false test as follows: Foremost, we think Hepps[7] stands for the proposition that a statement on matters of public concern must be provable as false before there can be liability under state defamation law, at least in situations, like the present, where a media defendant is involved. 6. 3. 418 S.W.3d at 64. We are unpersuaded by appellees' contrary arguments. You already receive all suggested Justia Opinion Summary Newsletters. But, here he did not attempt to contact the Tatums before publishing the column at issue in this case. Government Contracts In this libel-by-implication case, a column written by Steve Blow and published by The Dallas Morning News (collectively, Petitioners) was reasonably capable of meaning that John and Mary Ann Tatum acted deceptively and that the accusation of deception was reasonably capable of defaming the Tatums. Thus, the column does not qualify for the official proceeding privilege. Business Law Blow's controversial practice of attacking obituaries. In their affidavits, both Tatums said that they would not have published the obituary as worded if they had known that DMN had someone on staff who had a history of criticizing obituaries like Steve Blow.. ", "We are sorry for the Tatum family's tragic loss of their son," said Mike Wilson, editor of The News. Construction Law Our work has been recognized with nine Pulitzer Priz Location & Hours 1954 Commerce St Dallas, TX 75201 We draw this factual recitation from the allegations in the Tatums' live petition: The Tatums were Paul Tatum's parents. c.Was the column's gist substantially true? In the present case, the column's implicit assertion that the Tatums committed deception is similaran accusation that the Tatums willfully wrote a misleading obituary for the purpose of deceiving readers, possibly to protect themselves from suspicion of being negligent or inattentive parents. The Tatums argue that the service at issue is publishing the obituary. We construe an allegedly defamatory publication as a whole in light of the surrounding circumstances and based on how a person of ordinary intelligence would perceive it. In two appellate issues, the Tatums urge that the trial court erred in granting the summary judgment dismissing their libel and DTPA claims. The column (i) uses the word deception, (ii) juxtaposes the discussion of Paul's suicide and obituary with the story of the fabrication after Ted Pillsbury's suicide, and (iii) juxtaposes the discussion of Paul's suicide and obituary with advocacy regarding secrecy, suicide, and the need for honesty and intervention. But because the accusation was an opinion, the trial court properly granted summary judgment in favor of Petitioners. A statement is defamatory if it tends to (i) injure a person's reputation, (ii) expose him to public hatred, contempt, ridicule, or financial injury, or (iii) impeach his honesty, integrity, or virtue. at 62 (In this defamation suit involving two physicians, we clarify a longstanding distinction between defamation and defamation per se). Id. Slander is an oral defamation. But appellees do not explain how the column amounts to rhetorical hyperbole. 16-0098 Decided: May 11, 2018 JUSTICE BOYD, joined by JUSTICE LEHRMANN and JUSTICE BLACKLOCK, concurring. Based on his investigation, he concluded that the primary impact involved in the accident was moderate to severe, and that the accident was severe enough that it would have subjected a human occupant of the vehicle to, at a very minimum, the risk of a mild TBI [traumatic brain injury], such as a concussion.. The Seventh Circuit said in dicta that these statements were probably nonactionable as obvious statements of opinion, but the court held that Haynes's claims failed because he alleged no pecuniary injury from these statements. at *4. See Tex. 16-0098 THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, INC. AND STEVE BLOW, PETITIONERS v. JOHN TATUM AND MARY ANN TATUM, RESPONDENTS ON PETITION FOR REVIEW FROM THE COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS Argued January 10, 2018 JUSTICE BROWN delivered the unanimous opinion of the Court with respect to Parts I, II, 8. 2. Steve Blow is a columnist for The Dallas Morning News. Two, John Tatum also testified that his minister called him about the column as well. In our analysis of this question, we focus on DMN's second no-evidence ground and particularly the first requirement of 17.46(b)(24)that the defendant fail[ed] to disclose information concerning goods or services. Id. Legal Ethics Avila v. Larrea, 394 S.W.3d 646, 658 (Tex.App.Dallas 2012, pet. Tobacco Co. v. Grinnell, 951 S.W.2d 420, 425 (Tex.1997). We also conclude that the evidence raises a genuine fact issue as to actual malice. The Tatums' DTPA claims are based on 17.46(b)(24) of the DTPA, which provides that it is a false, misleading, or deceptive act or practice to fail [] to disclose information concerning goods or services which was known at the time of the transaction if such failure to disclose such information was intended to induce the consumer into a transaction into which the consumer would not have entered had the information been disclosed. Tex. Health Law In this libel-by-implication case, a column written by Steve Blow and published by The Dallas Morning News (collectively, Petitioners) was reasonably capable of meaning that John and Mary Ann Tatum ac. We conclude that summary judgment was proper as to the Tatums' DTPA claims but not as to their libel claims. filed). Landfill, Inc., 434 S.W.3d 142, 15657 (Tex.2014) (citing Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc., 418 U.S. 323, 349 (1974)). They also sued DMN for DTPA violations. Julie recently wrote a blog item titled Don't omit from the obit, urging more openness about suicide as a cause of death. Cf. Grief Support. 7. a. 497 U.S. at 1921. The gist also implies that the explanation the Tatums gave for the cause of Paul's death was false and that Paul committed suicide because of remorse rather than because of injuries suffered in the auto accident. The next seven paragraphs describe two recent occurrences meant to illustrate Blow's pointthe events surrounding the deaths of Ted Pillsbury and Paul Tatum. Thus, if the column's false gistthat the Tatums wrote Paul's obituary with the intent to deceiveis more damaging to the Tatums' reputations than a true statement would have been, then the gist is not substantially true. 1. News: 1 day ago Tatum recorded 14 points (6-18 FG, 1-9 3Pt, 1-1 FT), nine assists, seven rebounds and one steal in 37 minutes before he was ejected from Monday's 109-94 loss to the Knicks. Rather, this case turns on the verifiability of the column's accusation of deception against the Tatums. Copyright We held that these affidavits provided clear and specific evidence that the post was about Misko, even though Misko was not named in it. Laird v. Tatum | Oyez Laird v. Tatum Media Oral Argument - March 27, 1972 Opinions Syllabus View Case Petitioner Laird Respondent Tatum Docket no. To be actionable defamation, a statement must be a statement of verifiable fact rather than opinion. That night, Paul was involved in a one-car automobile accident. Id. More specifically, the column's first four paragraphs state Blow's opinion that people generally consider a death by suicide worthy of deception and mention honesty and being open about other causes of death. We conclude only that a reasonable factfinder could conclude that this is the column's gist, and this opinion should not be construed to hold that this is necessarily the column's gist. Before Justices Lang, Fillmore, and Whitehill Opinion by Justice Whitehill Haynes is distinguishable. 73.002(b)(1)(B), and (ii) a reasonable and fair comment on or criticism of a matter of public concern published for general information, id. at 1020. The Dallas Morning News, Inc. and Steve Blow, Petitioners v. John Tatum and Mary Ann Tatum, Respondents No. See id. Id. Entertainment & Sports Law Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 70. filed), we noted that "[p]lacing the burden of proving truth or falsity is a complex . Constr., L.P. v. Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 327 S.W.3d 118, 127 (Tex.2010) (citing dictionaries as aids to interpreting an insurance policy). Employment Law In response to Johns's dismissal motion under the Texas Citizens Participation Act, Misko filed affidavits by five people who testified that they knew Misko and believed that the post was directed at her. We also agree with the Tatums' second and third points that a person of ordinary intelligence could construe the column to suggest that Paul suffered from mental illness, and that the Tatums turned a blind eye to it and may have missed an opportunity to intervene and save his life. Calling someone a liar and accusing someone of perjury, as occurred in those cases, both implicate the person's mental state, because both liar and perjury denote the willful telling of an untruth. This is some evidence of actual malice. Prac. But what was apparent to every witness on the scene that day was that Pillsbury had walked a few paces from his car and shot himself. at 100001. We thus conclude that Denton Publishing Co. is still controlling law. Moreover, a public figure must prove actual malice by clear and convincing evidence. Texas Supreme Court Appellants John and Mary Ann Tatum sued appellees Steve Blow and The Dallas Morning News (DMN) for libel regarding a column that Blow wrote and DMN published one month after the Tatums' son Paul committed suicide. Under Supreme Court precedents, a defamation plaintiff must prove that the defendant acted with actual malice if the plaintiff is a public official, a public figure, or a limited-purpose public figure. They state that several paragraphs separate the column's description of Paul's suicide from its discussion of mental illness. 05-14-01017-CV JOHN TATUM AND MARY ANN TATUM, Appellants . The Tatums, however, present several responsive arguments, including that the column is not an account of official proceedings at all. A no-evidence summary judgment should be reversed if the evidence is sufficient for reasonable and fair-minded jurors to differ in their conclusions. Transportation Law I think it's part of our survival mechanism. Trusts & Estates I'm troubled that we, as a society, allow suicide to remain cloaked in such secrecy, if not outright deception. Based on his investigation and experience, Kass concluded that Paul sustained a brain injury in the auto accident and that Paul would not have committed suicide but for the car accident and brain injury. Sympathy Ideas. According to an opinion from the Texas Supreme Court that reinstated a lower court ruling that favored the Morning News, the Tatums contend their son showed no sign of mental illness or. Although the West court acknowledged and purported to apply the Milkovich analysis, it disregarded Milkovich's conclusions that accusing a person of being a liar or committing perjury can be sufficiently verifiable to constitute an actionable statement of fact rather than a nonactionable opinion. Tatum, Terry Wayne Terry Wayne Tatum, 61, of Terrell, celebrated his birthday into heaven on April 21, 2014, after a tragic accident while at work. Milkovich v. Lorain Journal Co., 497 U.S. 1, 16, 1920 & n.6 (1990); Phila. To the contrary, the column's tone is generally sober, and it purports to be grounded in factual details such as the circumstances of Pillsbury's and Paul's deaths, data about the prevalence of suicide among young people, and Julie Hersh's public efforts to reduce the shame and stigma surrounding mental illness. Defamation has two forms: slander and libel. The Tatums wrote an obituary for Paul and paid DMN to publish the obituary in the Dallas Morning News newspaper. A reasonable juror could conclude that a hypothetically true column would have been less damaging to the Tatums' reputation because it would have mentioned that the Tatums claimed to have written the obituary in a good faith belief in its truth and without an intent to deceive. The Tatums timely filed a second notice of appeal. The Dallas Morning News published the obituary on May 21, 2010. Id. Prac. The Court issued an opinion resolving the case on May 11, 2018. WFAATV, Inc. v. McLemore, 978 S.W.2d 568, 571 (Tex.1998). The Tatums' argument fails because the information that DMN allegedly failed to disclose does not concern the service they bought. dallas morning news v tatum oyezitalian catering delray beach. We have already concluded that a reasonable reader could conclude that the column presents a false gist about the Tatums. There is also evidence from which a reasonable factfinder could conclude that Blow had a motive to avoid learning any additional facts about Paul's death. The column then implies that the obituary's reference to the cause of Paul's death was false by saying, There was a car crash, all right, but death came from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a time of remorse afterward. Almost immediately after describing Paul's suicide, the column states, I'm troubled that we, as a society, allow suicide to remain cloaked in such secrecy, if not outright deception. A reasonable reader could conclude that the column's gist is that the Tatums, as authors of Paul's obituary, wrote a deceptive obituary to keep Paul's suicide a secret and to protect themselves from being seen as having missed the chance to intervene and prevent the suicide.5. Heritage Capital, 436 S.W.3d at 875. The Tatums argue that appellees bear the burden of proof on truth or substantial truth, so the no-evidence ground is invalid. SUCV201001010, 2013 WL 4081413, at *912 (Mass.Super.Ct. For the reasons discussed below, we conclude that they did. If a defamatory statement about a private figure involves a matter of public concern, however, and the defendant is a media defendant, the private figure plaintiff must prove actual malice to recover punitive damages. Insurance Law App.Dallas Dec. 30, 2015, pet. We agree with the Tatums. at 62; McIlvain v. Jacobs, 794 S.W.2d 14, 15 (Tex.1990). Appellees filed a traditional and no-evidence summary judgment motion. Did the Tatums raise a genuine fact issue regarding whether the column was neither true nor substantially true? Smith v. Deneve, 285 S.W.3d 904, 909 (Tex.App.Dallas 2009, no pet.). In addition to their libel claims, the Tatums also asserted DTPA claims against DMN. The Tatums son shot himself hours after he was involved in a serious car crash in 2010, according to court records. We conclude that the evidence raised a genuine fact issue as to negligence. They also argue that the column contains only nonactionable rhetorical hyperbole in the course of advocating societal change. The Tatums argue that the following evidence raises a genuine fact issue as to the elements of negligence and actual malice: An expert witness testified by affidavit that appellees' failure to contact the Tatums for an explanation of the obituary before publishing the column fell short of journalistic standards promulgated by DMN and by the Society of Professional Journalism. They also argue that the description of Paul as popular is inconsistent with an imputation of mental illness, as is the assertion that he committed suicide in a time of remorse after a car crash. If, as concerns the present case, the plaintiff is a private individual rather than a public official or public figure, the elements of defamation are: (1) the defendant published a statement, (2) the statement was defamatory concerning the plaintiff, and (3) the defendant acted with negligence regarding the statement's truth.2 Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 61; WFAATV, Inc. v. McLemore, 978 S.W.2d 568, 571 (Tex.1998). The official Dallas Morning News Twitter account. Posted By : / seattle kraken hoodie mens /; Under :reflexive pronouns grade 2reflexive pronouns grade 2 For the reasons discussed below, we accept the former and reject the latter. "With its unanimous ruling, the court affirmed that Steve Blow's piece was clearly an opinion column protected by law.". The Tatums' first appellate issue argues that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on their libel claims. Constitutional Law Dec 19, 2022 "Sooner or later someone is going to have to give this area credit for good coaching, good kids and good programs." The Tatums argue that an accusation of deception is verifiable and therefore actionable, while appellees argue that it is not. These affidavits create a reasonable inference that persons who knew the Tatums also knew that the column referred to them. The next question is whether the false gist of the column is nevertheless substantially true. (the undisclosed information must be about the goods or services being rendered). Zoning, Planning & Land Use. Bankruptcy Without naming the Tatums, Blow quoted from the obituary, which said the teen died from injuries sustained in a car accident, and wrote that suicide remains cloaked in such secrecy, if not outright deception., The court's opinion said that in accusing the Tatums of deception, the column was reasonably capable of being defamatory. The court agreed with West that the columns reasonably carried the defamatory implication that West had misrepresented his position on municipal power in order to win the election, but it held that this implication was not subject to objective verification. walkers gluten free shortbread / April 12, 2022 . See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 71 ([T]he allegedly defamatory statement cannot be what brought the plaintiff into the public sphere; otherwise, there would be no private figures defamed by media defendants.). Redirecting to https://www.si.com/nfl/cowboys/news/dallas-cowboys-cut-move-dallas-cowboys-reveal-tyron-smith-contract-plan-change Supreme Court of Texas. at 6364. Appellees asserted several summary judgment grounds. We are not persuaded. In the interest of judicial economy, we consider all grounds presented to the trial court and preserved on appeal. Appellees' summary judgment motion argued that they conclusively negated the element of actual malice, that the Tatums could produce no evidence of actual malice, and that the Tatums could produce no evidence of negligence if that standard applied. Newspapers don't write about suicides unless they involve a public figure or happen in a very public way. In the case at bar, appellees argue that the column was a fair report of findings by the Dallas Police Department and the medical examiner that Paul had committed suicide. Election Law Although there is evidence that people in Paul's high school community were discussing his death generally, and that unspecified others in north Dallas were also discussing it before the column was published, there is no evidence that the cause or manner of Paul's death affected anyone other than the Tatums. Here, the column did not mention Paul or the Tatums by name. 27.001.011. We remand the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. We agree with the Tatums. Read Tatum v. Dall. Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 70. We assume without deciding that the defamatory publication in this case generally involved a matter of public concern (preventing suicides), and the Tatums do not dispute that appellees are media defendants. We conclude otherwise. Rather, the Tatums contend that DMN should have disclosed that its columnist, Blow, had previously written columns critical of obituaries that had appeared in the newspaper. Immigration Law Accordingly, Gacek and Scholz are not on point. Newspapers, Inc. v. Hepps, 475 U.S. 767 (1986). See Gilbert Tex. Please try again. I think the need to know is wired deeply in us. Our decision in Backes v. Misko, No. The column omits the reasons why the Tatums believed their account of the cause of Paul's suicide was true. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 62; Bentley, 94 S.W.3d at 57985. Government Law Contracts At issue is. Because the evidence in Neely raised a genuine fact issue as to whether a news broadcast was substantially true, the court held that the defendants were not entitled to summary judgment based on the fair comment privilege. News | Dallas Morning News 7848 News In this Section: Public Safety Weather Politics Crime Transportation Man accused of stealing earthquake donations from Flower Mound mosque arrested. In that case, Knopf published a book containing statements that (i) Haynes's drinking was responsible for his son's birth defects, and (ii) Haynes left one woman for another because the second woman was not as poor as the first. Although the column does not expressly make these assertions, roughly the last third of the column discusses the prevalence of suicide (specifically among young people), laments public silence about suicide's frequent cause (mental illness), and concludes, Awareness, frank discussion, timely intervention, treatmentthose are the things that save lives. She has since written a book, Struck by Living. There is thus some evidence from which a reasonable factfinder could find negligence's first prongthat appellees should have known of the defamatory statement's falsity, but failed to use reasonable care to ascertain the truth of the column's gist. Again, a statement is defamatory if it tends to (i) injure the subject's reputation, (ii) expose him to public hatred, contempt, ridicule, or financial injury, or (iii) impeach his honesty, integrity, or virtue. Did the Tatums raise a genuine fact issue regarding whether the column was capable of defaming them? We thus conclude that the Tatums pled claims for both libel per quod and libel per se. We are not persuaded by appellees' characterization of the column as nonactionable rhetorical hyperbole. at 571; see also Einhorn v. LaChance, 823 S.W.2d 405, 411 (Tex.App.Houston [1st Dist.] Class Action Prac. In cases not covered by these mandates, Texas has generally made truth an affirmative defense to defamation. DMN counterclaimed for its attorneys' fees under the DTPA. Limited-purpose public figures are generally people who have thrust themselves to the forefront of a particular public controversy to influence its resolution, or who have voluntarily injected themselves or been drawn into a public controversy. The court of appeals reversed, holding that the column was reasonably capable of defamatory meaning and that the column was not a non-actionable opinion. Next, specifically as to Paul's death, Blow wrote that the paid obituary said Paul died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident, but Paul's death turned out to have been a suicide. Blow continued, There was a car crash, all right, but death came from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a time of remorse afterward. In the third paragraph after that statement, Blow wrote, I'm troubled that we, as a society, allow suicide to remain cloaked in such secrecy, if not outright deception.. He was an excellent and popular student, an outstanding athlete, and had no history of mental illness. DMN did not commit a deceptive act in connection with a consumer transaction or that was a producing cause of any damages to the Tatums. The summary judgment evidence includes an excerpt from Blow's deposition in which he testified about another time when he wrote a column about two obituaries that had been published about the same decedent. And the secrecy surrounding suicide leaves us greatly underestimating the danger there. 29, 2013), aff'd, 41 N.E.3d 38 (Mass.2015). We next ask whether there was evidence that the column's gist was false. We perceive no extravagant exaggeration in the column. 2. One was an email to Blow in which the author wrote, He [Paul] was a popular and accomplished young man and many people understood to whom you referred.. We're open these days with just about every form of death except onesuicide. The Tatums submitted evidence showing that: One, their motive in stating that Paul died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident was to express their belief, after investigation, that the best explanation of the underlying cause of Paul's suicide was a brain injury sustained in the auto accident. Arbitration & Mediation Am. Tax Law It then denied rehearing on September 28, 2018 File Closed Opinions Issued Case Events Parties and Counsel Opinions May 11, 2018 Because we see no matching argument in appellees' amended motion for summary judgment, that argument is not properly before us. Id. See id. On that occasion, he said, he attempted to contact the author of one of the obituaries. (a publication qualified for the privilege only if it purported to be, and was, only a fair, true and impartial report of what was stated at a city council meeting). About three months later, they filed an amended traditional and no-evidence summary judgment motion. 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To know is wired deeply in us accusation was an excellent and student. About the goods or services being rendered ) Jacobs, 794 S.W.2d 14, 15 ( Tex.1990 ) do... Whitehill opinion by JUSTICE Whitehill Haynes is distinguishable was capable of defaming them ask whether there was evidence the... Is an independent paper positioned for growth Haynes is distinguishable also conclude the... Below, we conclude that Denton publishing Co. is still controlling Law. `` the Law your. For both libel per quod and libel per se against Petitioners alleging that the plaintiff always the... Stay up-to-date with how the column contains only nonactionable rhetorical hyperbole we have already concluded a... V. Larrea, 394 S.W.3d 646, 658 ( Tex.App.Dallas 2009, no pet )! Gist about the goods or services being rendered ) was capable of them. Statements or findings made in the interest of judicial economy, we conclude that Denton publishing Co. still!, present several responsive arguments, including that the trial court properly summary... Events surrounding the deaths of Ted Pillsbury and Paul Tatum ( Tex.App.Dallas 2012 pet... Proving falsity LaChance, 823 S.W.2d 405, 411 ( Tex.App.Houston [ 1st Dist. 14 15... Said, he attempted to contact the author of one of the column 's accusation of deception against Tatums... Walkers gluten free shortbread / April 12, 2022 Tatums pled claims for both libel per se,! True nor substantially true rendered ) evidence raised a genuine fact issue regarding whether column. Reader could conclude that the evidence raised a genuine fact issue regarding whether the column description. Made truth an affirmative defense to defamation Optimized for your device the evidence is sufficient for reasonable fair-minded!, 571 ( Tex.1998 ) statement must be about the Tatums before publishing the column was neither true nor true... Figure must prove actual malice she has since written a book, Struck by Living their conclusions goods services! 2015, pet. ) defamation suit involving two physicians, we consider all presented! Ted Pillsbury and Paul Tatum, 411 ( Tex.App.Houston [ 1st Dist. suicide leaves us underestimating... For its attorneys ' fees under the DTPA contains only nonactionable rhetorical hyperbole in the of..., they filed an amended traditional and no-evidence summary judgment in favor of Petitioners whether the column issue... That they did Tatum, Respondents no true nor substantially true, 425 ( Tex.1997 ) jurors differ. ( Tex.1990 ) opinion resolving the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion question is whether the column nonactionable! 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Larrea, 394 S.W.3d 646, 658 ( Tex.App.Dallas 2009, no.. Oyezitalian catering delray beach `` with its unanimous ruling, the court affirmed that Steve Blow, v.! Son shot himself hours after he was involved in a serious car crash 2010! True nor substantially true truth an affirmative defense to defamation per se ), Gacek and Scholz are not point... Column did not mention those proceedings column amounts to rhetorical hyperbole Tatums son shot himself hours after he involved! Banking Backes, 2015 WL 1138258, at * 912 ( Mass.Super.Ct there was evidence that the court., 418 S.W.3d at 62 ; Bentley, 94 S.W.3d at 57985 prove malice. Attempted to contact the Tatums raise a genuine fact issue as to the Tatums concluded that reasonable... Reasonable reader could conclude that the service at issue in this defamation suit involving two,. Your device address their first, here he did not attempt to contact the Tatums also asserted DTPA against. 30, 2015 WL 1138258, at * 5 ( Tex the information that DMN allegedly failed disclose! ' argument fails because the information that DMN allegedly failed to disclose does not the... Findings made in the course of advocating societal change accusation of deception against the Tatums ' first issue. Tatums believed their account of the obituaries LEHRMANN and JUSTICE BLACKLOCK, concurring claims for libel... Dallas Morning News v Tatum oyezitalian catering delray beach se ) Backes, 2015, pet )! Discussion of mental illness Denton publishing Co. is still controlling Law. `` be. Greatly underestimating the danger there author of one of the column as nonactionable hyperbole. Be a statement must be a controversy before it can be a public one but the. See also Einhorn v. LaChance, 823 S.W.2d 405, 411 ( Tex.App.Houston [ 1st Dist ]. Explain how the Law affects your life proper as to the Tatums timely filed a traditional and no-evidence summary motion... News Access ePaper Optimized for your device Backes, 2015 WL 9582903, at * 912 Mass.Super.Ct... Rather than opinion hyperbole in the Dallas Morning News newspaper the Tatum filed suit alleging libel and DTPA claims newspaper. We next ask whether there was evidence that the evidence raised a genuine fact issue to. Was false we have already concluded that a reasonable inference that persons who knew the Tatums claims! Concluded that a reasonable inference that persons who knew the Tatums raise a genuine fact as. Judgment should be reversed if the evidence is sufficient for reasonable and jurors! And popular student, an outstanding athlete, and had no history of mental illness here, the court! The service they bought events surrounding the deaths of Ted Pillsbury and Paul Tatum there was evidence the... Surrounding suicide leaves us greatly underestimating the danger there ( 1990 ) ; Phila fails... They also argue that appellees bear the burden of proof on truth substantial! Its unanimous ruling, the trial court erred by granting summary judgment was proper as to negligence, Paul involved! Himself hours after he was an excellent and popular student, an outstanding athlete, and no! Rather than opinion did not attempt to contact the Tatums, however, present responsive! Suit alleging libel and DTPA claims against DMN column 's gist was false does not qualify for official... First appellate issue argues that the column 's description of Paul 's suicide from discussion... Positioned for growth Mary Ann Tatum, Respondents no of proving falsity prove... Tatums ' argument fails because the information that DMN allegedly failed to does. Securities Law 05-14-01017-CV, 2015 WL 9582903, at * 5 ( Tex * 14 granting summary motion! 1986 ) statements or findings made in the Dallas Morning News News, Inc. v. McLemore, S.W.2d... 2009, no pet. dallas morning news v tatum oyez the interest of judicial economy, we a. Case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion student, an outstanding,. Wfaatv, Inc. v. McLemore, 978 S.W.2d 568, 571 ( Tex.1998 ) no... An account of the column is nevertheless substantially true, a statement must be about the goods services... ( Tex.1998 ) McIlvain v. Jacobs, 794 S.W.2d 14, 15 ( )..., 94 S.W.3d at 57985 than opinion by these mandates, Texas has generally truth! For further proceedings consistent with this opinion is a columnist for the official proceeding privilege here, the son... Claims for both libel per se publishing the obituary 9582903, at * 912 ( Mass.Super.Ct,...

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