Kathy Griffin Scores Victory In Court Against Tennessee Man Who Accused Comedian Of Doxing Him
March 10 2023, Published 5:00 p.m. ET
A judge has thrown out the lawsuit accusing Kathy Griffin of causing a Tennessee man to lose his job after she called him out on Twitter, RadarOnline.com has learned.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, earlier this month, a federal court judge dismissed the entire case brought by Sam and Jill Johnson.
In the lawsuit, Sam claimed he was fired from his longtime job after Kathy posted a video of him arguing with LGBTQ+ teenagers on Twitter.
In 2021, Kathy reposted a viral video of Sam going back and forth with an 18-year-old teenager named Dalton Stevens who wore a dress to prom.
“I chose what I want to wear, so you can f--- off,” the teen told Johnson. The businessman replied, “you look like an idiot.”
The comedian wrote, “If this is Sam Johnson in Nashville, Tennessee, the CEO of @VisuWell, healthcare-tech-growth strategist, married to Jill Johnson where they may reside in Franklin, Tennessee, it seems like he’s dying to be online famous.”
Sam said the tweet led to VisuWell letting him go as CEO and removing him from the board.
The company released a statement saying it, “unequivocally condemns the behavior exhibited by Sam Johnson.”
Sam’s lawyer wrote, “Ms. Griffin is a malign internet provocateur and is notorious for her disturbing posts on various social media platforms, especially Twitter. Her preferred method of online harassment is to “dox” private citizens.”
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Sam said the video was “incomplete, edited, and out-of-context.” His lawyer wrote, “The Video Clip only showed one minute of an incident that had been developing for over one hour. The implication created by the Video Clip—that Mr. Johnson instigated a confrontation to bully two LGBTQIA+ teenagers at a hotel—was deeply misleading.”
In her response, Griffin said, “This case tests a core feature of our democracy: the ability to participate in debate on a public issue without fear of punishment.”
She said the case arises out of a “widely publicized incident in which [Samuel Johnson], a local health care executive berated a gay high school student who was taking prom pictures at the Harpeth Hotel in Franklin, Tennessee, early on a Saturday evening.”
Kathy demanded the lawsuit be thrown out claiming the first amendment protected her.
Her lawyer said “she simply stated her personal views on a matter of public concern in a public forum. The fact that Ms. Griffin added her voice to public discourse on social media — Mr. Johnson’s behavior as captured on a Video Clip of the incident being the subject of intensive news coverage — cannot be labeled as “doxing,” “harassment,” or “stalking.”
Kathy also argued she had no ties to Tennessee and could not be sued in the state. The judge agreed with that argument and threw out the case based on it being filed in the wrong jurisdiction.