Savage Romance Libel Allegations Lead to Severe Sanctions

I blogged about the underlying libel case, Tera Shanley a/k/a T.S. Joyce & Wicked Willow Press, LLC v. Robyn A. Hutchings a/k/a Terry Bolryder a/k/a Domino Savage two months ago; here's a quick summary of the allegations:

Ms. Shanley and Ms. Hutchings both write paranormal romance fiction. Readers of such fiction gather online to discuss books and promote authors. For instance, Ms. Hutchings avers that she has 8,000 followers on Facebook and 1,500 followers on Instagram. Ms. Shanley and Ms. Hutchings interacted in one online community for four months in 2016.

At diverse times, Ms. Hutchings published various negative comments about Ms. Shanley. She accused Ms. Shanley of being a "known homewrecker[,]" "sexually coerc[ing] and blacklist[ing] male models[,]" and engaging in "white supremacy dog whistling." She asked Ms. Shanley to "come answer for all the cheating and husband stealing[.]" Ms. Hutchings called Ms. Shanley a "repeat offender" rapist who "ruined everyone's rep[utation]" and said, "now its [sic] your turn."

In addition to the rape allegations, Ms. Hutchings accused Ms. Shanley of being "an actual child molester" who "raped a kid[,]" including her own child. She offered one thousand dollars if "anyone brings [Ms. Shanley] … here." And she uploaded a picture of a man with a noose around his neck after a post stating, "I'm really mad [Ms. Shanley] … you existing is like a total blight on humanity."

Even then, defendant Hutchings had apparently not complied well with her discovery obligations, and this "obstreperous litigation behavior" seems to have continued. As a result, in a detailed order issued today Magistrate Judge Jared C. Bennett (D. Utah) imposed serious sanctions on the defendant:

1. Plaintiffs' Rule 37(b) Motion for Sanctions is GRANTED.

2. The falsity of all of Ms. Hutchings's social media statements referenced in Plaintiffs' complaint are "taken as established" for purposes of this action.

3. Ms. Hutchings is prohibited from introducing any future evidence to support her defense of truth.

4. Ms. Hutchings's affirmative defenses are stricken.

Pro se litigants, take heed.

Because I can't resist, let me quote again from a jacket blurb for defendant Domino Savage's The Demon's Pet (Rise of the Morningstar Book 1) (>3000 Amazon reviews):

Ever since the great divide, when supernaturals emerged to take back the world, wolf shifters like me have lived in sheltered havens.

The celestials, winged gods who inhabit the sky realms above us, protect us as long as we follow the rules, and kill us if we don't.

So when I refuse to accept my place as the pack's scapegoat, they send an archangel to kill me. From the instant I see Samael, something burns between us. He's as powerful as I am powerless, with authority no one can gainsay.

And he decides he'd rather take me than kill me….

And from a jacket blurb for plaintiff T.S. Joyce's Lumberjack Werebear (Saw Bears Series Book 1) (also >3000 Amazon reviews):

Painter, Brooke Belle, is running from her past and hoping that a few weeks in a quaint country cabin will bring her artistic muse back from the brink. But when she lands smack dab in the middle of Asheland Mobile Park, she's sure there's been a mistake. Not only has her mentor rented her a dilapidated mobile home in the middle of nowhere, but the trailer park is filled with big, burly, growly, flirty, sexy-as-hell lumberjacks. And one in particular is making her think that maybe she's landed right where she needs to be….

I look forward to the coming volumes, Demonic Discovery Abuse and Saucy Saw Bears Sanctions.

Comments

[Á àß äẞç ãþÇđ âÞ¢Đæ ǎB€Ðëf ảhf]

Is this a pro se's superpower, the ability to turn any case into sanctions?

[Dr. Ed 2]

Well if lawyers were more available and affordable, there wouldn't be so many pro se trials. The one thing I didn't mention about the Standford Prison Experiment (50 years ago) was that back then, lawyers were available enough for several parents to find/retain one *that weekend* after seeing their sons.

I doubt you could do that today....

[John F. Carr]

The reboot of Laurell K. Hamilton's Guilty Pleasures tells the story of a pro se criminal defendant. She is like Piers Anthony. Both proved they can write good books.

[SRG]

Piers Anthony missed a chance by neglecting to write a book called "Qiq the Bucket"

[Dr. Ed 2]

Stephen King was adjunct English faculty at UMaine before his first commercial success (Carrie) — and later would come up to campus to tell stories — I think his first draft was always verbal and then he went from there because some of the ones he told later showed up as books.

The man is weird. If he wasn’t rich, he’d probably be locked up in the nuthouse weird….

It takes a certain type of person to write this sort of stuff….

[CJColucci]

Paranormal romance fiction is a thing?

[Michael P]

See Rule 34 of the FRIP, the Formal Rules of Internet Preposterousness: If it exists, there is porn of it.

[Vandalia]

Everything is a thing.

[santamonica811]

"Is that a gavel in your pocket, your honor, or are you . . . ?

"I'm ready to submit my oral evidence."

"Judge Learned Hand; may I introduce you to Judge Learned Penis?

[ObviouslyNotSpam]

Alex Jones knows how this feels...

[Dr. Ed 2]

Alex Jones was right about the herbicide in the water turning the frogs gay. The defense to this was that unlike frogs, the sex of a human baby is determined at the moment of conception.

I seem to remember lots of trannies disagreeing with that....

[Darth Buckeye]

This strikes home for me. Just yesterday, I got a call from someone I vaguely know from our old synagogue. Her daughter got in a relationship with a not-so-honorable man. The daughter vented her spleen on social media. From what the caller told me, the social media posts were truthful. The man hired a lawyer who sent daughter a cease and desist letter, then filed an action for defamation. The mother has health issues; the daughter has mental health issues. Neither can afford a lawyer. They asked me for help. I know what to do procedurally, but not substantively.

The mother had the daughter file an answer. Sigh. First thing is to always file a motion to dismiss. That chance was lost. Plaintiff served interrogatories on her. They answered some but not all of them. Most of the questions needed to be answered. Some are possibly objectionable. Plaintiff’s lawyer then filed a motion for sanctions. That was almost funny. He cites case law that “litigants who choose to proceed pro se are presumed to know the law and correct procedure, and are held to the same standard as other litigants.” That case involved a pro se plaintiff in a civil case. He also cites a case where the court wrote that pro se litigants “are not to anticipate or require special treatment from the judge. . . .” That case involved a pro se defendant in a criminal case. I don’t think either of those cases is applicable. He also cites Prof, Cond. Rule 1.2(e) because the daughter threatened to file criminal complaint against the plaintiff. Uh, I don’t know if that applies to a pro se defendant.

I can’t get involved. I don’t have insurance coverage. I want to help; but I can’t. They have been looking for legal help but can’t find any. The law school legal clinics don’t help in civil cases like this. Where can defendants go?

[Dr. Ed 2]

I am not an attorney, nor do I pretend to be one. I do, however, have an extensive background in student affairs and have been on the edges of messes like this more than once.

As mental illness may be an aspect of this (or "any port in a storm"), I'd start there and I would start by contacting the Judge Bazelon Center in DC. See: https://www.bazelon.org/

They may or may not be helpful -- over the years I've had mixed results with them, but at the very least they will forward your call to the disability law folks in the particular state (i.e. the state she is in).

Each state tends to have three different groups -- first a group of volunteer lawyers (think ACLU or legal clinic) that concentrate on disability rights cases (Bazelon does too, and they've won some major cases). A lot of this involves keeping the disruptive tenant from being evicted and getting landlords to make units accessible.

The second is the state department of mental health, which often has new and rather Orwellian names, but the legal rights of the mentally ill is part of their mandate -- unless they have spun that off to the State Attorney General's Office.

The third are social service contractors -- non profits that are funded largely be state DMH & DMR departments. I'd call the social worker at a hospital in the area and just ask who is the local nonprofit service agency.

Is crazy a defense -- damned if I know -- IANAA -- but I think this is your best route. (Besides calling a local (to her state) Rabbi and asking him if he can help you...)

The other thing is what has she got to sue for -- and what does she have that can't be protected by bankruptcy? Answering that question is providing legal advice --asking it isn't....

But bankruptcy isn't just for sketchy contractors playing corporation games...

One other caveat -- judges tend to be VERY uncomfortable dealing with mental illnesses and tend to toss their common sense overboard when they hear the words. But in extremis, well.....