Judge tosses Nebraska state lawmaker’s defamation suit against PAC that labeled her a sexual abuser
By MARGERY A. BECK
Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A judge has dismissed a defamation lawsuit filed by a Nebraska lawmaker against a conservative political action committee that labeled her a child “groomer” and sexual abuser in online posts. State Sen. Megan Hunt sued the Nebraska Freedom Coalition after its officers repeatedly targeted her in social media posts, going so far as to suggest she had sexually abused her own child. The judge threw out the lawsuit on Wednesday before it could be heard by a jury. Douglas County District Judge Todd Engleman’s ruling said the conservative group’s “hyperbolic language” used in the posts showed that the accusations were statements of opinion rather than fact.