The New York Times suffered a major courtroom defeat Thursday when an Alabama jury found that the newspaper defamed former University of Alabama basketball player Kai Spears. Following a nine-day federal trial, the eight-person jury awarded Spears $9.25 million in damages. The case arose from a 2023 Times article that falsely placed the then-18-year-old freshman at the scene of a fatal shooting. Spears was not there.
The dispute was heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. Spears was a freshman walk-on for the Crimson Tide when Times sports reporter Billy Witz published the article on March 15th, 2023. The report covered the circumstances surrounding a January 2023 shooting that killed 23-year-old Jamea Harris. It incorrectly identified Spears as a passenger in a car with Alabama basketball star Brandon Miller at the scene.
Read Full Article: https://theamericantribune.com/new-york-times-loses-big-in-major-defamation-suit-defeat/
