Rolling Stone UVA ‘Fake Rape’ Story Defamation Trial Gets Ugly

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Heat Street:

The $7.5 million lawsuit against Rolling Stone over its discredited story about a brutal gang rape at a US college frat house opened this week and proceedings have been nothing short of explosive.

 

The suit has been brought by University of Virginia’s Associate Dean of Students, Nicole Eramo, who says the magazine’s November 19, 2014 cover story, “A Rape on Campus,” damaged her career and her health.

 

The article by reporter Sabrina Rubin Erdely, who is named as a co-defendant, described in alarming detail the sexual assault of a student called “Jackie” by seven men at the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity house in September 2012.

 

Ms. Eramo claims Ms. Erdely cast her as the “chief villain” who sought to protect the school by discouraging Jackie from reporting her alleged assault to police.

 

A subsequent police investigation found no evidence to back up Jackie’s claims and scrutiny by other media organizations, in particular The Washington Post, uncovered serious inconsistencies and gaping holes in her narrative.

 

Ms. Eramo wept in court on Tuesday as she described the backlash against her on campus after the story was published as immediate and overwhelming, sparking protests and even death threats.

 

She received hundreds of emails and letters calling her everything from a “wretched rape apologist” to a “disgusting, worthless piece of trash.”

 

“It just seemed to be going completely viral, and I didn’t know what to do,” she said. “I felt alone and scared.”

 

Rolling Stone lawyer Scott Sexton acknowledged during his opening statement that the magazine made reporting mistakes but stressed that Ms. Eramo must prove that the magazine acted with “actual malice,” meaning it knew what it was writing about the dean was false or at least should have known it wasn’t true.

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Well, that shouldn't be too hard to do...