Washington – Advocates for Conservative Advocate Sidney Powell told a federal court on Monday that “no reasonable person” would end her unfounded allegations of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election because she was suing Dominion Voting Systems for $ 1.3 billion in defamation. fight.
In a case before the federal district court in the District of Columbia, Powell argued that Dominion’s case against her should be dismissed, as ‘it was clear to reasonable persons’ that her statements were her own opinions and legal theories. Members of the public, she said, had the freedom to draw their own conclusions as to whether Dominion had thwarted the election against former President Donald Trump, as Powell had repeatedly claimed.
“Determining whether a statement is protected involves an investigation in two steps: is the statement one that may be true or false? And would reasonable people conclude that the statement is a fact, in light of of the wording, context and circumstances surrounding its publication, “her lawyers told the court.” Analyze on the basis of these factors, and even with the assumption, that each of the statements alleged in the complaint is true or may be untrue, no reasonable person will conclude that the statements are in fact factual statements. “
Powell further argued that her statements are constitutionally protected, in part because they were made in the context of a bitter political debate, and political statements are prone to exaggeration and hyperbole.
According to her lawyers, the presidential race in 2020 was ‘bitter and controversial’, and Powell made her statements ‘as a lawyer for her preferred candidate and in support of her legal and political positions.’
“Such characterization of the alleged defamatory statements supports the defendants’ view that reasonable persons would not accept such statements as fact but would only view them as allegations awaiting trial by the opposition process,” she argued. and ‘added the speech on this. can not act here. ‘
In addition to the court dismissing the case, Powell argued that the case should not be brought in the District of Columbia, but in the Northern District of Texas, since she lives in Dallas. If the court decides not to drop the case, Powell asked that it be moved to Texas.
Dominion, which supplies electronic voting machines and software to governments and the U.S. and worldwide, filed its defamation suit against Powell in January, claiming $ 1.3 billion in damages. Powell spread conspiracy theories in the aftermath of the November election that Dominion was involved in a comprehensive scheme to set up the presidential election, led by Mr. Trump was strengthened because he fought unsuccessfully to secure a second term.
Dominion argued Powell had inflicted “unprecedented damage” on the company by her repeated allegations that he had bribed officials, conspiring against Mr. Trump and voices voiced for the former president to give President Biden a boost. Dominion argued that its employees had harassment and threats because Powell’s allegations spread among far-right conspiracy theorists.
In addition to Powell, Dominion has filed defamation lawsuits against Mike Lindell, founder and CEO of MyPillow, and Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who also spreads unfounded allegations of voter fraud, claims the company is directing the election.