BLM Activist Sues Judge Jeanine, Fox News

DeRay McKesson

A civil rights activist who advocates ending police violence is suing Fox News and Jeanine Pirro for allegedly endangering him by falsely reporting that he instructed protestors to attack an officer during a Black Lives Matter protest in Louisiana.

DeRay McKesson says he was falsely arrested while attending a 2016 protest in Baton Rouge after Alton Sterling was shot and killed by officers there. He and 185 other people arrested during the event sued the Baton Rouge Police Department, which resulted in a six-figure settlement.

During the protest, a police officer was hit by a rock that knocked him to the ground and caused severe injuries to his jaw and head. He later sued Black Lives Matter and McKesson for his injuries. After a judge dismissed his claims against BLM, Pirro appeared on Fox & Friends and, according to the complaint, "made a series of outrageously false and defamatory statements about Mr. McKesson, including that he directed someone to hit the police officer in the face with a rock."

McKesson claims Pirro, a seasoned lawyer, knew what she was saying was false and her statements damaged his reputation and endangered his physical safety. He's suing for damages and an injunction preventing Fox from publishing or republishing the defamatory statements. (Read the full complaint here.)

A Fox spokesperson sent The Hollywood Reporter a statement in response to the claims: “We informed Mr. McKesson‘s counsel that our commentary was fully protected under the First Amendment and the privilege for reports of judicial proceedings. We will defend this case vigorously.”