Johnston v. Noe Corp. L.L.C.

81 So. 3d 735, 2011 La. App. LEXIS 1402, 2011 WL 5864646
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 23, 2011
DocketNo. 46,647-CA
StatusPublished

This text of 81 So. 3d 735 (Johnston v. Noe Corp. L.L.C.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Johnston v. Noe Corp. L.L.C., 81 So. 3d 735, 2011 La. App. LEXIS 1402, 2011 WL 5864646 (La. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

WILLIAMS, J.

| plaintiff, Kathy Denise Johnston, appeals a district court’s judgment denying her motion for partial summary judgment and granting summary judgment in favor of defendant, NOE Corporation, LLC. For the following reasons, we affirm.

FACTS

The decedent, Samuel Johnston, Jr., was a legally blind employee of the Louisiana Center for the Blind in Ruston, Louisiana. He served as an apartment manager and a mentor for the students living in the school’s apartments. Gina Koons1 was a legally blind student attending the Louisiana Center for the Blind, and she resided in the apartments managed by the decedent. On April 23, 2007, Gina called her mother, Jeanine Koons, and told her that she had been sexually assaulted. After this telephone conversation, Jeanine drove from Mobile, Alabama to Ruston, and reported the allegations to the Ruston Police Department. Gina identified the decedent as her assailant and told the responding police officers that the decedent had sexually assaulted her by touching her genitals and breast area. Gina was transported to a local hospital for an examination.

Police officers picked the decedent up and transported him to the police department. The decedent was advised of his Miranda rights and questioned for several hours. The decedent voluntarily provided DNA samples and submitted to being photographed. He was not arrested.

At some point, Jeanine called KNOE TV-8 news to report the allegations. After speaking with Jeanine, Mike McDaniel, a reporter with |2TV-8 news, contact[737]*737ed the Ruston Police Department, which confirmed that the allegations had been reported and that an investigation was ongoing. McDaniel drove to Ruston and interviewed Gina and Jeanine. During the interview, Jeanine and Gina identified the decedent as the assailant. McDaniel also spoke with police officers and requested a copy of the initial police report. Lt. Curtis Hawkins provided McDaniel with a redacted copy of the report which did not include the decedent’s name; the decedent was identified only as “an employee” of the Louisiana Center for the Blind. Further, Lt. Hawkins discouraged McDaniel from reporting the allegations because the investigation was ongoing, no charges had been filed and no arrest had been made. At some point, McDaniel also contacted the Louisiana Center for the Blind to confirm the decedent’s employment. McDaniel was told that the decedent was employed there, but he had been placed on leave pending an investigation.

Thereafter, TV-8 news aired a report of the allegations on the 10:00 p.m. news; the report was aired again the following morning. The news report included the decedent’s name,2 information that had been obtained from the police department, and recorded statements from Gina and Jeanine. The transcript of the broadcast reads as follows:

NEWS ANCHOR: New at Ten o’clock: A Ruston man is accused of sexually assaulting a student at the Louisiana Center [for] the Blind. And the student claims this is not the first time she’s had a problem with the accused attacker. TV8’s Mike McDaniel has the exclusive story. And be | ?,advised that it includes graphic language of a sexual nature. It is not suitable for children, and some adults may find the description disturbing.
MCDANIEL: Gina Koons is legally blind and holds tightly to a stuffed lion. At 4 feet 5 inches tall, this 20 year old is a new student at the Louisiana Center for the Blind in Ruston.
Coming from Mobile, Alabama, Gina wanted to learn a life of independence, but after only a month of living in her new apartment, Gina says her sense of independence was shattered early Monday Morning.
GINA: He started rubbing up and down my leg, in between my private area and jabbing his fingers in my private area.
MCDANIEL: The ‘he’ she speaks [of] is her apartment manager, Sammy Johnson Junior, who is also legally blind. Gina says this all started when she locked her keys inside her apartment. Her roommate wasn’t home so Gina called Johnson who had master keys to each apartment.
But before Johnson arrived, Gina’s roommate came to let her in.... A few minutes later, Johnson showed up.
GINA: He came in but he did not knock nor [sic] ring the doorbell and I knew it was him because I said ‘Sammy?’ And he responded.
MCDANIEL: Once Johnson entered the apartment, Gina asked for help with an ice pack because she sprained her ankle earlier in the day.
GINA: So he told me to lay [sic] down in my bed, so he could help put some ice on my ankle.
MCDANIEL: That’s when Gina says the touching began, first her legs, then [738]*738between them. Gina says it didn’t stop there.
GINA: And rubbing on my breast area and he put his mouth on my breast area[.] I had teeth marks. What was going through your mind? ... I was confused, I was fighting to get away.
[4MCDANIEL: Gina says she was going to remain quiet, but about an hour later, she finally called her mother.
[[Image here]]
MCDANIEL: Police took Gina to the hospital to be examined.... Koons says she made several formal complaints against Johnson, here at the apartment complex in the past, claiming he would follow her around and would even enter her apartment without her permission.
[[Image here]]
NEWS ANCHOR: When we contacted Ruston Police, TV-8 news was told the alleged incident is still under investigation. The Louisiana Center for the Blind confirms Johnson worked at the Center for about a year and a half, and is now on leave, pending an investigation.
Johnson has not been arrested or charged with any crime.
⅜ * *

After the story aired, the decedent hanged himself. Plaintiff discovered the decedent’s body the following morning.

On March 14, 2008, plaintiff filed a lawsuit against NOE Corporation, LLC, the operator of TV-8 news, alleging defamation and false light invasion of privacy.3 Defendant answered the suit and admitted to airing the report of the allegations against the decedent; however, defendant denied any liability for the decedent’s suicide. Thereafter, plaintiff moved for partial summary judgment, arguing that she was entitled to a judgment, as a matter of law, on the issues of defamation and false light invasion of privacy. In response, defendant moved for summary judgment, seeking the dismissal of plaintiffs claims.

On January 20, 2011, the district court denied plaintiffs motion for partial summary judgment, and granted summary judgment in favor of | ¡¡defendant. The court stated:

Essentially, this court finds — and—concludes that (as a matter of law), the particulars of The Florida Star [v. B.J.F., 491 U.S. 524, 109 S.Ct. 2603, 105 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989) ] case supports Defendant’s position and — thus—Defendant should — and—does hereby prevail. Plaintiffs case is [djismissed.

Plaintiff appeals.

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Bluebook (online)
81 So. 3d 735, 2011 La. App. LEXIS 1402, 2011 WL 5864646, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/johnston-v-noe-corp-llc-lactapp-2011.