#TheyLied Libel Case, Stemming from Allegations of “Mental and Physical Abuse[]” by Fellow High School Student, Can Go Forward

From Friday’s California Courtroom of Attraction choice in Norway v. Lee (written by Justices Kathleen Banke, joined by Justice Monique Langhorne Wilson and Alameda Superior Courtroom Decide Arturo Castro):

This case arises from a wave of cyber bullying that occurred at Lowell Excessive Faculty when plaintiff and respondent Kimi Norway, and defendant and appellant Jonathan Lee, have been college students there…. Within the fall of 2021, Norway was a senior …, concerned in quite a few college actions, and a pupil officer. As a pupil officer she was required to take a management class.

In October of that yr, she attended a faculty dance and took images. She uploaded various the photographs to a faculty Instagram account as a part of her management class necessities. Unbeknownst to her (she had not been dwelling within the space the prior yr in the course of the Covid-19 closure), one of many photographs contained the picture of a pupil accused of sexual assault.

Inside hours, college students posted disparaging feedback in regards to the accused pupil on the photograph during which he was proven. One pupil despatched a message to Norway stating the photograph must be eliminated. Norway instantly did so, but in addition questioned whether or not the unfavorable feedback in regards to the accused pupil have been an instance of bullying.

Per week later, throughout a dialogue within the management class about “latest allegations of sexual harassment and sexual assault on the college,” a number of of the scholars, together with [another student, referred to as] C.Ok., “publicly and vocally accused [Norway] of enabling sexual abuse and minimizing the plight of sexual abuse victims.” The trainer allowed the dialogue to proceed unchecked, leading to extra “defamatory” and “vitriolic” verbal assaults on Norway.

The next day, Norway was the topic of “myriad Instagram posts” accusing her of “‘sufferer blaming,'” “‘invalidating survivor’s experiences,'” “‘defend[ing] sexual assaulters,'” partaking in “‘efficiency ass activism,'” and utilizing “‘her energy as [a Lowell Student Association] Officer to defend abusers.'” {College students within the management class had “unfettered entry to publish on official college Instagram accounts” and regularly up to date the accounts, together with updates about Norway’s supposed assist of sexual assaulters and harassers.} College students branded her an “‘abuser,'” “‘sexual assaulter,'” “‘serial manipulator,'” and “‘literal abuser.'” Some referred to as for her to be faraway from her pupil workplace.

Among the many Instagram posts that day was one by Lee, stating as follows:

“I’ll begin this off by thanking those that have been courageous sufficient to share their experiences by way of their statements. They’ve all impressed me to return out and communicate upon [sic] my very own experiences. Much like [another student’s post], I am undecided what ‘class’ my expertise falls underneath. I’ve additionally been reluctant about sharing my expertise as the broader majority of abusers have seemed to be male. Nonetheless, I’ve come to purpose that there is no such thing as a purpose for male experiences with sexual assault, sexual harassment, abuse, manipulation, and so forth. to not be heard. To echo a message that others have unfold by way of their statements, I do know that there are various survivors on the market and I hope that my talking out towards a manipulator/harasser/abuser evokes others to do the identical. Sadly, our college programs should not outfitted with directors who make survivors really feel comfy sufficient to share our tales, leaving us with no alternative however to talk out on social media.

“With that being stated, listed here are a few of the main incidents that occurred between myself and my psychological and bodily abuser, Kimi Norway:

“Kimi and I met in eighth grade, getting nearer all through the remainder of eighth grade up till my sophomore yr in highschool. Though we by no means formally dated, we’d do issues that ‘simply mates’ wouldn’t do. On the time, I did not know any higher, permitting her to make the most of my physique for her personal pleasure. She would guilt me into letting her use my physique, at occasions telling me that she was upset and that she wanted comforting, and different occasions telling me that I ought to let her use my physique as a result of I had emotions for her. Regardless that I knew what she was doing was unsuitable, I could not say no to her as a result of it felt like that was my solely manner of receiving validation from her. Once I lastly labored up the braveness to inform my mates about how her actions made me really feel, they informed me that I used to be loopy and that I ought to have been comfortable {that a} woman was [sic] doing these items to me. Foolishly, I listened to what that they had informed me and continued to let her use my physique for her personal pleasure.

“She was additionally very manipulative, not permitting me to be myself, moderately a model of myself that might please her. On the time, I’d’ve accomplished something for her due to how I felt for her, and he or she knew that. She knew that she had the flexibility to get away with something and that I’d let issues slide. In spite of everything, I used to be led to imagine any excuse that she had made for herself. She knew that what she was doing was unsuitable, however she continued to take action as a result of she appeared to get pleasure from seeing me in emotional ache. She knew that I used to be being susceptible towards her, and regardless of that, she would drive me to ship her inappropriate footage of myself, realizing that I used to be mentally unable to say no to her. Once I had lastly realized the severity of what she had accomplished, I deleted the images that I had despatched her. I bear in mind her then confronting me about deleting the images, and after I informed her I used to be uncomfortable together with her having these footage, she laughed at me, telling me that she had already screenshotted them and that there was nothing I might do to get her to delete them.

“She would not permit me to produce other feminine mates, telling me that if I really preferred her, I would not really feel the necessity to produce other mates. Throughout certainly one of our final interactions, I bear in mind her pulling me apart to speak throughout our lunch interval. On the time, there was building taking place at my college, which meant that there have been areas that had felt secluded sufficient for privateness. I bear in mind her attempting to take my telephone out of my pocket, and continued even after I resisted, considering that I used to be ‘taking part in alongside.’ When she lastly tore the telephone from out of my possession, she demanded for [sic] the password, threatening to unfold lies about me hiding the ‘fact’ from her. Reluctantly, I gave her my password, giving her entry to past private data that I wasn’t comfy sharing with anybody. Whereas looking out by way of my telephone, she got here throughout a gaggle chat that I used to be in for tutoring, containing two highschool seniors and extra importantly, one other woman.

She requested me why I used to be mates with one other woman, telling me that my emotions for her will need to have been pretend. Unable to regulate her anger, she lashed out at me, kicking my shins repeatedly, telling me that I deserved the beating/abuse as a result of I used to be mates with different women. She additionally appeared to get pleasure from hurting me, telling me that she knew her kicks damage as a result of she performed soccer. After she was accomplished taking all her anger out on me, she went to class, and as an alternative of doing the identical, I took myself to the nurse’s workplace to wash up the cuts left on my shins. This was the final straw.

“I have been hesitant on opening up about my expertise with Kimi as a result of I knew that she was widespread within the sense that she was on our class board and it appeared like she had quite a lot of mates who I did not assume have been going to assist me.

“I wish to make this as clear as potential, STOP GIVING THE ABUSERS/MANIPULATORS/ASSAULTERS/HARASSERS EXCUSES. DO WHAT IS RIGHT.

“If there may be anybody on the market that wants somebody to speak to, know that my door is open to anybody, and I imply anybody, who feels comfy speaking about their expertise. Keep secure.”

Norway vehemently denies Lee’s accusations and characterization of their relationship, and claims he initiated all of the sexual contact about which he presupposed to complain in his publish, and likewise, on his personal initiative despatched her the images of his “‘sexual’ physique components” about which he complained within the publish. {Norway doesn’t dispute that she and Lee grew to become mates within the eighth grade and that they used to “kiss/make out,” and that one event when her mother and father weren’t house, she eliminated her shirt. She claims she eliminated no different clothes, however Lee (with none request by her) eliminated all of his clothes.}

She believes he made the publish in retaliation for her ending the connection after the argument in the course of the lunch hour Lee referred to in his publish and disputes Lee’s description of that interchange. In keeping with Norway, Lee grabbed her as she was strolling away, she tried to interrupt his grip, and, failing to take action, she kicked him to get away. She additionally believes he made the publish when he did to make the most of the social media discourse on sexual assault and harassment that was significantly topical on the time, together with on highschool and school campuses. Norway asserts Lee “knew the web [at the time] would blindly imagine his aspect of the story.”

Lee is equally adamant that he made no misstatements about their relationship and maintains he was expressing how he had felt as a middling teenager, who got here to imagine he was emotionally and sexually manipulated by Norway. In his declaration in assist of his movement to strike, Lee states he “determined to share my experiences within the hopes that they could assist another person who had gone by way of one thing comparable.” He goes on to state, “the posting was associated to issues that occurred to me after I was 15 years previous. The whole lot that I wrote in my publish is true and precisely displays my factual recollections and my emotions. I spoke the reality. I didn’t accuse Kimi of committing sexual assault or some other crime. I solely described precisely issues that occurred between us, and the way I felt about these issues. I needed to share what occurred and needed to attempt to assist others that may be in the same state of affairs.”

The evening Lee made the publish, Norway’s father texted Lee’s mom and informed her Lee had posted a defamatory Instagram. Lee took the publish down the next morning.

Nevertheless, C.Ok.’s publish accusing Norway of being “an ‘abuser,’ ‘serial manipulator,’ [and a] ‘defender of abusers,'” continued to be reshared “numerous occasions.” Different college students “additionally repeated lies all through Instagram, different social media, and nose to nose conversations” that Norway “had dedicated sexual assault.” The coed authorities’s official account posted “a ‘Assertion Concerning Kimi Norway,’ stating that ‘the LSA 2022 board’ ‘reaffirm our assist for survivors of sexual violence,'” and described Norway “as a ‘perpetrator’ of ‘sexual assault,’ ‘condemned’ her actions,’ and said the coed authorities was ‘doing all the things in [their] energy to take away her from management positions.'” By the top of that day, “greater than twenty college students had joined the cyberbullying marketing campaign towards [Norway], typically by the use of official college social media accounts.”

The next day, college directors ordered the media accounts “taken down ‘as a result of authorized issues.'” “Nevertheless, almost instantly, new posts went up maintaining almost similar verbiage and defamatory allegations, however eradicating [Norway’s] identify,” and it was “clear to all college students” who the particular person “being focused was.” The senior promenade committee posted a “‘Assertion Concerning Kimi Norway'” just like that posted by the coed authorities, “make clear[ing] that we don’t tolerate any types of assault or harassment no matter who the perpetrator is.” …

Norway sued Lee for defamation (amongst different claims, which weren’t mentioned on this iteration of the case). The Courtroom of Attraction held that Norway alleged sufficient to permit the case to go ahead, whether or not or not she might show “particular damages” (within the sense of particular, identifiable loss “in respect to … her property, enterprise, commerce, career, or occupation”):

There might be little question that his allegedly false statements about Norway, on their face, uncovered her “to hatred, contempt, ridicule, or obloquy” and brought on her “to be shunned or prevented” and have been subsequently defamatory per se. Certainly, the posts that adopted Lee’s make it crystal clear his accusations uncovered Norway to hatred, contempt, ridicule, and obloquy, and brought on her to be shunned and prevented….

It’s not solely clear from Lee’s briefing whether or not his problem to the trial court docket’s order is restricted to the court docket’s dedication that Norway adequately alleged and sufficiently supported a declare of per se defamation, or whether or not he additionally maintains that her defamation declare, no matter how it’s characterised, is extra essentially poor as a result of his publish assertedly contained solely nonactionable opinion and no provably false assertion of truth. (See Bently Reserve LP v. Papaliolios (2013) 218 Cal.App.4th 418, 426 (Bently Reserve) [“To be libelous, a ‘”statement must contain a provable falsehood …”‘ and, to this end, ‘”courts distinguish between statements of fact and statements of opinion for purposes of defamation liability”‘” (quoting Summit Bank v. Rogers (2012) 206 Cal.App.4th 669, 695)].) Within the trial court docket, he variously argued that the statements in his publish have been “too imprecise to be actionable” and mirrored the opinions of an inexperienced, middling teenager. The court docket thought-about his “mere opinion” argument meritless stating, “Essentially the most cursory look on the allegations (e.g. Grievance ¶ 61) reveals statements of obvious truth.” …

[T]o the extent Lee … [argues] that his publish quantities to the nonactionable opinion of a teenage boy and subsequently can not assist any sort of defamation declare … we agree the publish consists of statements which might be topic to being proved false….

Wanting first on the language of the publish, it plainly accused Norway of doing various particular issues, all of that are provably false information [i.e, can be proved false, if they are indeed false -EV]. Certainly, that Lee’s publish contained provably false information is confirmed by his personal declaration in assist of his movement, whereby he states, for instance, that “[e]verything that I wrote in my publish [was] true and precisely displays my factual recollections and my emotions,” and that he described “precisely issues that occurred between us, and the way I felt about these issues.”

The publish additionally plainly accused Norway of sexually manipulating, harassing, or abusing him. He referred to as her his “psychological and bodily abuser” and referred to as himself a “survivor.” True, he said within the publish he was “undecided what ‘class’ my expertise falls underneath,” however the clear import was that Norway acted in a sexualized, inappropriate, and hurtful method. And whereas saying somebody engaged in sexually manipulative, abusive, or harassing conduct could also be an final truth, based mostly on operative information, it’s nonetheless a factual indictment the accused can disprove.

Turning to the context during which the publish was made, it’s all the extra obvious that Lee was accusing Norway of sexual misconduct. As we’ve recited, this publish was made on the heels of Norway having been accused by different college students of supporting a pupil accused of sexual assault and being unsupportive and unsympathetic to victims of sexual misconduct. And by its plain language, the publish purported so as to add to the general public discourse on sexual assault, abuse, and harassment by chronicling sexual misconduct by a feminine pupil towards a male pupil. In sum, when one appears to be like on the totality of the circumstances, as Lee urges us to do, it’s readily obvious the publish portrayed Norway as having engaged in inappropriate and hurtful sexual or sexualized conduct….