A federal judge in Florida dismantled President Donald Trump's $10 billion defamation case against The Wall Street Journal on Monday, ruling that the lawsuit fails to meet the legal standard required to pursue such claims against a news organization.
U.S. District Judge Darrin Gayles dismissed the case after determining Trump's allegations "comes nowhere close" to demonstrating actual malice, the legal threshold demanding proof that a false statement was published knowingly or with reckless disregard for the truth.
The judge's decision centered on the Journal's reporting practices. "The Article explains that, before running the story, Defendants contacted President Trump, Justice Department officials, and the FBI for comment," Gayles wrote. "President Trump responded with his denial, the Justice Department did not respond at all, and the FBI declined to comment." The ruling noted the paper also reviewed the document in question before publication.
Trump filed the lawsuit last July following a Journal story reporting that a birthday book assembled for Jeffrey Epstein's 2003 celebration contained an explicit card seemingly from Trump. The card featured a hand-drawn naked woman with what appeared to be Trump's signature in the pubic area, along with a typewritten imaginary conversation between Trump and Epstein.
Trump denied authorship and accused the Journal of fabrication. A copy of the card later surfaced from Epstein's estate, though Trump and the White House maintain it is a forgery.
Notably, the judge declined to determine whether Trump actually created the card, writing that such factual questions "cannot be determined at this stage of the litigation." Instead, Gayles focused narrowly on whether Trump established the journalistic negligence his lawsuit required.
The case was dismissed without prejudice, allowing Trump to refile. Gayles gave him two weeks to file an amended complaint, citing legal precedent for the opportunity. A spokesman for Trump's legal team said the president would "follow the judge's ruling and guidance to refile this powerhouse lawsuit" and pledged to "hold accountable those who traffic in Fake News."
The Journal's publisher, Dow Jones and Co., responded with a statement expressing satisfaction with the outcome: "We stand behind the reliability, rigor and accuracy of The Wall Street Journal's reporting."
Trump and Epstein maintained a social relationship for over a decade before a falling out in the early 2000s. Trump has said the split occurred because he considered Epstein a "creep" and suspected him of poaching employees and young women from Mar-a-Lago. During House testimony earlier this year, former President Bill Clinton recalled discussing Epstein with Trump roughly two decades ago, saying Trump told him they had "great times together" but separated over "a real estate deal."
Epstein, a financier with political connections, pleaded guilty to soliciting a minor in 2008. He died in custody in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. Federal authorities have said he victimized over 1,000 women and girls. Trump has faced no charges related to Epstein and has denied wrongdoing.
Author Sarah Mitchell: "This ruling signals that Trump will need far stronger evidence of actual malice to proceed, but the door isn't closed yet."
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