Judge partially dismisses defamation case against Jerry Jones
Another day, another defamation lawsuit against the member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame thrown out of court, at least in part.
On Monday, a federal judge in Mississippi dismissed the defamation lawsuit filed by Hall of Famer Brett Favre against Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe. On Tuesday, a federal judge in Texas partially dismissed a defamation lawsuit filed against Hall of Famer Jerry Jones.
Via Don Van Natta, Jr. or ESPN.com, Judge Robert W. Schroeder III issued a ruling extinguishing a portion the civil claim initiated earlier this year by Alexandra Davis, 26. She claims that she is Jones's daughter, and she alleged in the lawsuit that Jones and two others "initiated a deliberate plan" to portray her as "an 'extortionist' and a 'shakedown artist.'"
The judge concluded that the comments made were either true or "not defamatory." He also ruled that Davis is a "limited public figure," triggering the higher "actual malice" standard to prove defamation liability.
The judge gave Davis and her lawyers an opportunity to amend the complaint to allege, if possible, that Jones and others had acted with "actual malice." Malice can be established by showing that the defendants knew the statements were false, or that they acted with reckless disregard to the truth or falsity of the statements.
"We are amending our pleading and we are pleased that the case is moving forward," attorney Andrew Bergman said, via Van Natta. Davis has 21 days to file the amended pleading.
The situation traces to a lawsuit filed by Davis in March 2022, in which she sought to establish that Jones is her father. Jones was ordered to submit to a paternity test; per Van Natta, the test "has been delayed." (No reason was cited in the article for the delay.) The second lawsuit arose from allegations that Jones and others launched an effort to smear Davis's character "based knowingly on false statements and accusations."
If the amended complaint survives a potentially renewed motion to dismiss, Davis's lawyers will have an opportunity to conduct discovery aimed at proving that Jones knew the statements were false, or that he acted with reckless disregard to their truth or falsity.
Thus, the second case isn't over. And the initial case regarding her effort both to establish paternity and to extinguish a confidentiality agreement that Davis's mother had signed years ago is still pending, too.
