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SLAPP
A Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,
in which a corporation or developer sues an organization in an attempt to scare it into dropping protests
A Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,
in which a corporation or developer sues an organization in an attempt to scare it into dropping protests
against a corporate initiative.
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Imagine you've been summoned for jury duty. (Bummer, eh?)
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Plaintiff #1 was the CEO of a multi-million dollar private corporation whose main source of funding comes from you, the tax-payer.
Plaintiff #2 is a member of the corporation's Board of Directors. He is a college professor of social work at an elite university. He teaches a course in "communication and interviewing". One of his current research interests: Scapegoating.
The Defendant is a middle-aged chronically ill disabled woman, living on a small fixed-income. She has lived peacefully for thirty years on the small farm she shares with her retired husband and her elderly mother.
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The Plaintiffs are relocating 94 convicted juvenile sex offenders right down the street from the Defendant, greatly impacting her life. The Defendant has voiced her objections publicly, including on the Internet. Plaintiffs are suing her for Defamation.
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You and your fellow jury members will learn a lot about the Nexus Corporation and Nexus Diversified. You will hear how the Defendant is but one of several neighbors who have been protesting the annexation of 38.81 acres in Bradbury Township; the sale of the property to the city of Onamia; the subsequent sale of the property to Nexus/Nexus Diversified; the rezoning to permit approximately 94 sex offenders into their R1 residential area - next to elderly widows and daycare.
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You'll hear a lot of testimony from the Defendant and her neighbors about the terrible impact upon their lives. You'll hear about lost property values, shattered dreams, and safety concerns. And you will learn how Nexus and the city government of Onamia deceived, misled, and lied to the public in order to build a $14 million dollar 5 building unlocked facility for the 94 sex offenders and approximately 140 employees who are forcing their way into this quiet, peaceful spot. You'll see the actual police and sheriff's reports and learn that the mayor and city council intentionally lied and hid the truth from citizens: reckless public endangerment. There will be evidence of Nexus submitting false information on their application in order to gain tax abatement from the city and county, after the State of Minnesota denied them tax exemption. All of the dirt on these Plaintiffs, Nexus and the Onamia Mayor and City Council will be exposed in court.
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You will learn a lot about sexual deviancy and the type of offenses these adolescent males have committed. You'll hear about their crimes, the harm they have caused to others, and the reasons they have been removed from their communities and placed in the Mille Lacs Academy. You may hear about what they did to some of their victims. (I hope you have a strong stomach. There are toddlers involved.) By the end of the trial, you'll be quite an expert on paraphilia. You'll understand why these juvenile offenders are safety risks in their own community. I guarantee you won't want them living in your backyard.
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Besides a lengthy examination of the sex offender issue, you'll hear evidence of how the five guys on the Onamia city council have acted as agents for Nexus; how they have repeatedly attempted to circumvent laws, ordinances, and the Constitution in order to force the sex offender facility upon their citizens - for purely economic reasons as well as for personal gain. You'll hear about conflicts of interest. There will be evidence of conspiracy and corruption. You'll also get to know the county commissioners. I guarantee you won't want to vote for any of these guys again.
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The trial will most likely be long, but it is sure to be interesting. And when it finally comes down to the Defamation charges, you could be amused if the high-buck attorney for the Plaintiffs stands up in a moment of courtroom drama, whirls around and points at the Defendant and shouts with indignation, "Your Honor! Members of the Jury! SHE CALLED MY CLIENT 'POOPSIE'!!!!!"
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How would you decide this case?
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Isn't it bad enough that the Plaintiffs - neither of whom live here or are part of the community - are forcing 94 convicted sex offenders onto innocent long-term residents, using local government and strong-arm tactics to ensure that these American citizens have absolutely no say in a matter that intensely and adversely affects them? But for these Plaintiffs, the rich, self-important bullies attacking one of their NIMBY victims with a frivolous lawsuit - out of spite, out of embarrassment for being exposed, or as an example to silence and intimidate others... to sue a person for telling the truth - while she's just trying to defend herself, her property, her way of life, and to protect her mom....
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Now ain't that just a SLAPP in the face...
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Oddly enough, just by bringing this frivolous lawsuit, the plaintiffs have basically affirmed the defendant's claims
and proven her case.
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See you in court.
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