PANAMA CITY, Fla. – U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Younger is celebrating the “vindication” he obtained after a jury discovered that CNN had defamed him, concluding the extreme two-week court docket battle.
“I’m glad it’s over,” Younger instructed Fox Information Digital in an interview. “Feeling very, very, very good.”
After greater than eight hours of deliberation, the six-person jury dominated Younger was to be awarded $4 million in misplaced earnings, $1 million in private damages corresponding to ache and struggling and stated that punitive damages are warranted in opposition to CNN. However because the second part of the trial was underway, legal professionals for each Younger and CNN instructed 14th Judicial Circuit Court docket Choose William S. Henry they’d reached a settlement.
“It’s been a long three years, and to have the outcome that we wanted, which was vindication publicly, is an incredible feeling. And I’m glad that it’s over, and we don’t have to spend more years and more time arguing about the meaning of a word,” Younger stated.
JURY FINDS CNN COMMITTED DEFAMATION AGAINST NAVY VETERAN, SETTLEMENT REACHED ON PUNITIVE DAMAGES
U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Younger spoke with Fox Information Digital following his defamation victory in opposition to CNN. (Joseph A. Wulfsohn/Fox Information Digital)
The settlement quantity was not disclosed, however it got here after an skilled witness instructed $150 million was a good quantity to punish CNN.
Following the years-long authorized battle with CNN, Younger tells Fox Information Digital he would not have “any animosity” in the direction of the community.
“I think that this was a good outcome for both of us,” Younger stated. “I’m able to get on with my life now, and I hadn’t been able to even imagine what that would look like or feel like for a very long time. I’m still kind of wondering what that is gonna feel like when the dust settles. But in terms of animosity towards CNN, I don’t have any at all.”
“I hope that they learn something from this experience,” he continued. “I hope that they take this as an opportunity to look in the mirror and realize that, you know, there is room for change and improvement, and if that’s the outcome that it has on CNN and maybe others in the media also can see that as something that’s positive.”
CNN DEFAMATION TRIAL: CLOSING ARGUMENTS MADE AS JURY BEGINS TO DELIBERATE LAWSUIT AGAINST NETWORK
CNN settled its defamation case in opposition to Younger after a jury discovered that community defamed him. (John Greim/LightRocket by way of Getty Photographs)
Vel Freedman, Younger’s lead counsel within the defamation lawsuit in opposition to CNN, additionally touted the authorized win.
“We were able to clear Zach’s name, get a verdict, and then settle so he can avoid protracted appeals and move on with his life,” Freedman instructed Fox Information Digital. “So, as a lawyer, it’s just exactly what you want to do.”
In a press release to Fox Information Digital, a spokesperson for CNN stated, “We remain proud of our journalists and are 100% committed to strong, fearless and fair-minded reporting at CNN, though we will of course take what useful lessons we can from this case.”
Younger accused CNN of defaming him after it aired a graphic tying him to “black markets” throughout the section that first aired on “The Lead with Jake Tapper.” (CNN/Screenshot)
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Younger accused CNN of smearing him by implying he illegally profited when serving to folks flee Afghanistan on the “black market” throughout the Biden administration’s army withdrawal from the nation in 2021. Younger believed CNN “destroyed his reputation and business” by branding him an unlawful profiteer who exploited “desperate Afghans” throughout the November 2021 section.
Younger’s authorized workforce obtained damning CNN inside messages via discovery repeatedly exhibiting staffers expressing overt hostility in the direction of the Navy veteran. Amongst these offered to the jury embody one calling him a “s—bag” an “a–hole” one saying he has a “punchable face.”
It was additionally revealed that Alex Marquardt, the CNN correspondent who led the on-air report, instructed a colleague “we’re gonna nail this Zachary Young mf—er,” a message typically cited all through the trial.
Fox Information’ Brian Flood and Annie McCuen contributed to this report.
