Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Post Deleted

Previously I posted a story that implicated an individual connected with the Klein ISD Bond program with bank fraud. To date I have found nothing to indicate my original story was fundamentally incorrect, but I have no other supporting information other than the original allegation made to me by a source that wishes to remain anonymous. No one would comment to the correctness or incorrectness of the allegation. The Individual threatened a lawsuit if I did not retract the post. New York Times v Sullivan puts the burden of proof for public figures at proving that the defendant knew the allegation was false. Since it is difficult to prove what is in a person's mind. this burden of proof is difficult to meet. In Gertz v Robert Welch Inc. the court ruled that for individuals who are not public figures, the burden of proof is for the plaintiff to show that the defendant was negligent in researching the story. By contacting the only two entities that would have knowledge of such an investigation, I believe I fulfilled my duty in that regard. I further made it clear that the individual had not been found guilty and that it was an allegation, not a fact. I still have no reason to believe the allegation made to me is incorrect. However, I am not a rich person. I cannot afford an expensive lawsuit to defend myself. Therefore, I have withdrawn my story. I feel confident that had I had unlimited funds to litigate this, I would have prevailed. But threats of litigation have silenced me.

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