At a hearing scheduled for 1:00 p.m. tomorrow in Charlottesville Federal District Court , lawyers for Public Citizen and the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia will ask Judge Norman Moon to dismiss a defamation and trademark lawsuit filed by the Rev. Jerry Falwell against the operator of a website that parodies the well-known minister.
The site, at www.jerryfalwell.com and www.jerryfallwell.com, pokes fun at Falwell’s advocacy of Biblical literalism and his penchant for giving advice. Another page purports to discover a biblical code showing that Falwell is a false prophet. On June 20, Falwell sued Cohn in the U.S. District Court in Lynchburg . He alleged trademark violations and libel.
In their motion to dismiss filed September 9, Public Citizen and the ACLU of Virginia asked the court to dismiss the case because the court lacks jurisdiction and because the Website does not libel Falwell.
According to the motion, hearing the case in Virginia would have serious First Amendment implications for Internet users everywhere. Cohn lives in Illinois , is not licensed to do business in Virginia , doesn’t have an office or employees here, and owns no property in Virginia . Yet he is being required to defend himself in a court in Virginia , hundred of miles from his home. “People who type their thoughts about public figures on a computer would think twice if they knew they would have to defend themselves at any spot on the globe where the figure happened to be,” said Public Citizen attorney Paul Alan Levy, who will argue the case tomorrow. “That would seriously hamper people’s First Amendment rights.”
The motion also argues that Falwell cannot argue that calling him a false prophet is libelous because it is an opinion, not a statement of fact.
In addition to Public Citizen’s Levy, ACLU of Virginia legal director Rebecca Glenberg is also representing Cohn in the case.
Contacts: Public Citizen, Paul Levy, 202-588-1000 ACLU of Virginia, Rebecca Glenberg, 804-644-8022
