Judge To Sanction And Investigate Fox News For Withholding Evidence In Dominion Suit

The judge in the Dominion lawsuit against Fox News stated that he will start sanctioning the network and investigate its withholding of evidence.

Via: The New York Times:

The judge overseeing Dominion Voting Systems’ lawsuit against Fox News said on Wednesday that he was imposing a sanction on the network and would very likely start an investigation into whether Fox’s legal team had deliberately withheld evidence, scolding the lawyers for not being “straightforward” with him.

The rebuke came after lawyers for Dominion, which is suing for defamation, revealed a number of instances in which Fox’s lawyers had not turned over evidence in a timely manner. That evidence included recordings of the Fox News host Maria Bartiromo talking with former President Donald J. Trump’s lawyers, Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani, which Dominion said had been turned over only a week ago.

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Fox has been withholding evidence related to Rupert Murdoch’s role as a corporate officer at the network, and the judge is considering appointing a special master to investigate Fox’s handling and turning over of evidence. If the situation sounds familiar substitute the name Donald Trump for Fox News and it looks like both the former president and his favorite cable news network are engaging in very similar behavior.

The judge also ruled that if Dominion has to redo any depositions or conduct new depositions Fox News would be liable for all costs and expenses. The same judge previously ruled that Fox News has no First Amendment protections in the case<.>

If Fox News loses this lawsuit, it could cost them billions of dollars, but more importantly, it would establish accountability for conservative media, like Fox, that knowingly lie.

For the health of the nation’s media ecosystem, Fox being held accountable would be a major step forward. Defamation is by intention difficult to prove, but if Dominion wins, it will be a game-changing moment in US media.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association