OPINION — Recently, on a social media page with more than 20,000 members, a user accused former mayor Ginny Dickey of lying about the defamation litigation brought by Beth Culp against mayor Gerry Friedel. Even assuming that, as the accuser contends, Dickey did erroneously refer to the monetary settlement as a “judgment,” that misstatement does not affect the following facts or make her a “liar.”
In response to an email criticizing his social media posts, Friedel accused Culp of making a death threat against Donald Trump. Friedel subsequently accused Culp of creating his offensive posts.
Culp sued Friedel in his individual capacity. Although he was not sued for any official misconduct, the town, through the Arizona Municipal Risk Management Pool, defended Friedel and funded the monetary settlement using public funds.
