The Wrestling Post: Ventura wins defamation case

On Tuesday this week, a Minnesota jury found in favor of former governor and professional wrestler Jesse Ventura in a defamation case against the estate of a former Navy SEAL that wrote in his best-selling book about a fight with Ventura.  The jury awarded Ventura $1.8 million.

Ventura won $500,000 for his defamation claim as he denied getting into a fight with Chris Kyle, a former member of the Navy SEALs and elite sniper.  He also won $1.3 million for unjust enrichment.

Essentially, the book, “American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History,” written by Kyle included a part wherein he talked about an encounter at a bar in Coronado, California where a “celebrity SEAL” was talking a little too much.  In the book, he was referred to as “Scruff Face.”  Kyle stated that he punched him.  It came out in media interviews promoting the book that the “celebrity SEAL” was Ventura.

Ventura sued in 2012 and continued the suit against the estate of Kyle after Kyle died in a shooting at a Texas firing range. He claimed that the book caused him to lose earnings and alienated him from the SEAL community

Source:  NY Times

As a public figure, the standard for proving defamation is higher than that of a private person.  Ventura is considered as a public figure for a variety of reasons including formerly holding public office, performing as a wrestler and hosting a variety of television shows.

In honor of those that have taken the bar this week, here are the factors for defamation:

1.  There must be a statement that has been published;
2. The statement is false; and
3. The false statement must cause injury.

For a public figure, like Ventura, to win a defamation claim, he must prove that the writer had knowledge that the information was false.

Payout Perspective:

There’s no indication that the estate of Kyle will appeal the ruling. It appears that insurance paid the defense for Kyle’s estate and presumably will pay the verdict.  Ventura states that the jury award will essentially pay off the lawyers.  The jury deliberated several days after closing arguments which some suspected that Ventura had proved his case and it was a matter of how much he would receive.  It would be interesting to know the evidence which showed that the incident retold in the book was false.