Washington Post
July 14, 2021
United States District Judge John P. Cronan dismissed Moore’s suit Tuesday, saying Cohen’s claims were “clearly a joke and no reasonable viewer would have seen it otherwise.”
Cronan dismissed the case, including claims made by Moore’s wife, Kayla, citing First Amendment protections and a waiver Moore signed before participating in the interview that barred him from suing.
“It is simply inconceivable that the Program’s audience would have found a segment with Judge Moore activating a supposed pedophile-detecting wand to be grounded in any factual basis,” Cronan wrote in his opinion. “Given the satirical nature of that segment and the context in which it was presented, no reasonable viewer would have interpreted Cohen’s conduct during the interview as asserting factual statements concerning Judge Moore.”