Judge dismisses libel case against 'public figure'

© Associated Press 2002
April Brown

By Dara Kahn

According to the Cranford Chronicle, on Friday, November 7, Superior Court Judge Marianne Espinosa dismissed a libel suit brought by Sebastian D’Elia, Union County director of public information in New Jersey, against Tina Renna, founder and president of the Union County Watchdog Association, a 501(c)(3) organization whose goal is to “[monitor] the activity of county government and advocat[e] change to eliminate waste, corruption and incompetence,” according to the “mission statement” section of the organization’s website.

The case began when Renna posted an entry in April 2006 entitled “County Hacks are Soulless Psychopaths” on her blog, The County Watchers, which compared D’Elia to Adolf Hitler and questioned his sexual orientation. Seven months later, in November 2006, D’Elia filed a libel suit against Renna, another County Watcher member Patricia Quattrocchi, a Garwood resident, and the Elizabeth Reporter, which had printed the blog entry as commentary.

Judge Espinosa found that Renna’s blog did not defame D’Elisa because he was a public figure who was not able to prove he was damaged by the blog post. Phillip Morin III, Renna’s attorney, released a statement Friday that said even if the blog was libelous, he had failed to prove he was damaged.

"The decision further demonstrates that Internet bloggers can challenge the actions of government officials and receive the same protections afforded to the traditional media,” Morin said, quoted in the Cranford Chronicle article.

This case follows previous battles between Renna and D’Elia in print and in court, between a watchdog of policy and spending, and a spokesperson for the county.