The jury foreperson in U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young’s defamation victory over CNN said she was prepared to award “up to $100 million” in punitive damages before an undisclosed settlement was reached.
Fox News Digital was in the courtroom last month when the six-person jury in Bay County, Florida ruled Young was awarded $4 million in lost earnings, $1 million in personal damages such as pain and suffering and said that punitive damages are warranted against CNN.
As the jury was gearing up to determine punitive damages, 14th Judicial Circuit Court Judge William S. Henry announced that Young and CNN reached a settlement for the amount that would be awarded to the Navy veteran. The jurors were sent home and were never given the chance to declare how much they felt CNN deserved to pay, but their figure would have been significant.
“The message the jury wanted to send was to not only CNN but to all media that the general public is fed up with fake news and partial truths,” foreperson Katy Svitenko told Variety.
JURY FINDS CNN COMMITTED DEFAMATION AGAINST NAVY VETERAN, SETTLEMENT REACHED ON PUNITIVE DAMAGES
A jury found that CNN defamed U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young.
“My personal opinion is that it could have been up to $100 million,” she continued. “It had to be high enough to actually punish CNN and to get the attention of other media outlets as well.”
Young successfully alleged that CNN smeared him by implying he illegally profited when helping people flee Afghanistan on the “black market” during the Biden administration’s military withdrawal from the country in 2021. Young believes CNN “destroyed his reputation and business” by branding him an “illegal profiteer” who exploited “desperate Afghans” during a November 11, 2021, report by Alex Marquardt that first aired on CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper.”
The settlement amount was not disclosed. The settlement announcement came after an expert witness suggested $150 million was a fair amount to punish CNN.
The segment at the heart of the defamation settlement first aired on “The Lead with Jake Tapper.” (CNN/Screenshot)
Svitenko also said that Marquardt “came across as extremely arrogant” on the witness stand and criticized CNN staffers who badmouthed Young internally during the reporting process.
Young’s legal team obtained damning CNN internal messages through discovery repeatedly showing staffers expressing overt hostility towards the Navy veteran. Among those presented to the jury included one calling him a “s–tbag” and an “a–hole,” one saying he has a “punchable face.”
“They might want to clean up their internal emails and have reporters act as professionals and not name-calling middle schoolers,” Svitenko said.
CNN DEFAMATION TRIAL: CLOSING ARGUMENTS MADE AS JURY BEGINS TO DELIBERATE LAWSUIT AGAINST NETWORK
U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young teared up on the witness during the trial. (Jessica Costescu)
After the settlement, CNN said it will take “useful lessons” from the decision.
“We remain proud of our journalists and are 100% committed to strong, fearless and fair-minded reporting at CNN, though we will of course take what useful lessons we can from this case,” a CNN spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
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