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Federal Judge Deals Final Blow to Ray Epps' Case Against Fox News

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A federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a defamation lawsuit brought by Ray Epps against Fox News.

The former Arizona resident was among those on the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, 2021, to protest the outcome of the 2020 election, according to his July 2023 complaint against Fox.

Epps accused the news network of promoting the false narrative that the election had been stolen from Trump, using him as a scapegoat for the Jan. 6 violence, and “promoting the lie that Epps was a federal agent who incited the attack on the Capitol.”

“And with that, Fox, and particularly Mr. [Tucker] Carlson, commenced a years-long campaign spreading falsehoods about Epps. Those lies have destroyed Ray’s and [his wife] Robyn [Epps’s] lives,” he alleged. .

Epps further stated that he and his wife received death threats and eventually moved to Utah for their safety.

On Wednesday, Judge Jennifer L. Hall of the U.S. District Court of Delaware granted Fox’s motion to dismiss the Epps’s suit citing a “failure to state a claim” as the reason.

“Failure to state a claim is a defense asserting that even if all the factual allegations in a complaint are true, they are insufficient to establish a cause of action and the case should therefore be dismissed,” Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute explained on its website.

Fox News Media said in a statement in response to Hall’s ruling, “Following the dismissals of the Jankowicz, Bobulinski, and now Epps cases, FOX News is pleased with these back-to-back decisions from federal courts preserving the press freedoms of the First Amendment.”

George Washington Law School professor Jonathan Turley elaborated on why he believes the judge made the ruling she did.

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“Epps and his wife have clearly been through a nightmare of threats and innuendo. However, this public controversy was discussed by various networks and the Jan. 6th  Committee. It was also a matter of legitimate public debate and commentary, with people on both sides expressing their views on the evidence and underlying allegations,” he wrote in a post on his website.

“The problem for the court was trying to draw a line when coverage and commentary becomes defamation on such subjects. The chilling effect on free speech can be immense,” Turley added.

He pointed to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in 1964 case New York Times v. Sullivan, which has since been applied to both public officials and public figures “requiring a showing of ‘actual malice’ where media had actual knowledge of the falsity of a statement or showed reckless disregard whether it was true or false,” he wrote.

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Many people questioned whether Epps was an FBI informant or was otherwise working for the federal government, based on his conduct the day before and the day of the Jan. 6 Capitol incursion.

Epps and the FBI denied there was any working relationship, CBS News reported in April 2023.

In January 2022, during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz pressed then-FBI Assistant Executive Director Jill Sanborn on whether Epps had been working with the bureau during the Capitol incursion.

Cruz recounted that Epps was captured on video among a crowd in Washington, D.C., the night of Jan. 5, 2021, yelling, “Tomorrow, we need to get into the Capitol! Into the Capitol!”

It was such strange behavior, the senator observed. People yelled back, “No!”

They then started chanting, “Fed, Fed, Fed!”

Cruz asked Sanborn directly, “Was Ray Epps a fed?”

“Sir, I cannot answer that question,” Sanborn responded.

Cruz next displayed photographs allegedly showing Epps whispering to some protesters, who then proceeded to tear down a barricade around the Capitol.

Finally, Cruz pointed out that Epps was originally among those pictured on an FBI wanted notice in the days immediately after the incursion.

In fact a cash reward was offered for information leading to the arrest of Epps, the senator said.

However, “magically,” by July, Epps had disappeared from the public posting, Cruz noted.

The Department of Justice charged Epps in September 2023 with one count of misdemeanor disorderly conduct for his involvement on Jan. 6, but not some of the other charges often brought against Jan. 6 defendants, such as trespassing on restricted grounds or obstructing, influencing, or impeding an official proceeding.

A federal judge sentenced Epps in January to one year of probation.

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Randy DeSoto has written more than 3,000 articles for The Western Journal since he began with the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."
Randy DeSoto wrote and was the assistant producer of the documentary film "I Want Your Money" about the perils of Big Government, comparing the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Randy is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths," which addresses how leaders have appealed to beliefs found in the Declaration of Independence at defining moments in our nation's history. He has been published in several political sites and newspapers.

Randy graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in political science and Regent University School of Law with a juris doctorate.
Birthplace
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Nationality
American
Honors/Awards
Graduated dean's list from West Point
Education
United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law
Books Written
We Hold These Truths
Professional Memberships
Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Entertainment, Faith




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