A California bachelor who accused more than 50 women of ruining his reputation by sharing their bad experiences with him on a Facebook group reportedly had the rug pulled out from under him by the court on Monday, which ruled for his freedom of expression.
“It feels really good to have all the charges dismissed. It was not just the two counts of defamation, but the 11 counts against me,” said one of the women targeted by the suit, Vanessa Valdez, during a press conference reported by FOX 11 LA.
On Monday, Stewart Lucas Murrey’s efforts were reportedly brushed aside by a Los Angeles civil court judge, who ruled that a first woman was within her rights when she shared her opinion on the Californian in a Facebook group, following a bad online dating experience with him.
Having found no proof of conspiracy, the judge would have granted a request against SLAPP proceedings, to prevent the bachelor from abusing the judicial system by using it as a tool to silence women.
In his civil suit, the man demanded more than $2.6 million in compensation from more than fifty women, whom he accused of plotting against him in the “Are we dating the same guy” group. (“are we dating the same guy” in French) in order to damage his reputation and ruin his love life.
The woman behind the post, Kelly Gibbons, posted a message in the group after weeks of interacting online with the Californian, until a rude phone call that led to him cutting ties, according to the “New YorkPost.”
“I wouldn’t want my friend to go out with someone like that,” she would have justified, before comments from strangers supported her suspicions, according to the American newspaper.
The other defendants named in the lawsuits hoped that this first decision will set a precedent for the next hearings to come in the coming weeks, Olivia Berger, another defendant, added Monday.
But despite Monday’s decision, the man did not seem to want to budge, sharing a press release on X to deplore the judge’s decision.
“My lawsuit targets several defendants, particularly those who obsessively conspired to stalk, dox and harass me. These practices constitute illegal violations of privacy and have become widespread because they are not sufficiently combated,” he reacted Tuesday on X.
