Dem primary also-ran John Haywood sues student journalists for libel, seeks $51.1m
Source: Seven Days (Vermont)
Remember John D. Haywood, the Democrat who challenged President Barack Obama in the New Hampshire primary? Neither do we.
Haywood didn't get much press in the run-up to the first-in-the-nation primary — nor did a dozen other also-rans whose names appeared on the ballot. But journalism students of Saint Michael's College took the time to interview and profile each and every B-lister on the New Hampshire primary ballot in the name of the democracy.
Now one of those candidates — Haywood — is suing St. Mike's, and the two student journalists who penned his profile, for libel. In a federal lawsuit filed at U.S. District Court in Burlington, Haywood claims that the article — published online six days before the Jan. 10 primary — contained numerous mis-characterizations about his record and portrayed him as a "bumbling, inept monster."
... And here's the kicker. Haywood wants the court to award him a metric shit-ton in damages: $1 million to compensate him for "the permanent damage to his reputation" in his home community of Durham, N.C., $50 million in punitive damages, and $120,202 to reimburse what his campaign spent on newspaper advertising. (Because, you know, the college journalism piece totally sunk his White House dreams).
Read more: http://7d.blogs.com/offmessage/2012/09/former-presidential-candidate-sues-st-michaels-student-journalists-for-libel.html
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