A New Canaan woman knowingly published a false and “malicious” statement about a fellow town resident last year on her Instagram account, libeling and defaming that individual, according to a lawsuit filed in state Superior Court.
Referencing a widely discussed local incident in 2017 where a young man fell and was injured in the plaintiff’s home, the social media post asserted falsely that the individual had “watched [the victim] die for over 10 minutes,” according to the complaint, and said “where is HER mugshot???”
Published last June, the Instagram post which finishes with a series of hashtags—“Big money =. big lawyers = miscarriage of justice #gthirsty #basic #sojv #karmaisabitch #sickpeopleflocktogether #morepressthanaserialkiller #hatesmemorethanhelovesourkids #pathetic #makesmesadregardless”—and specifically the false assertion about watching a young man die “is a communication that tends to harm the reputation” of the plaintiff, “as to lower her in the estimation of the community and, or deter third persons from associating or dealing with her,” according to the complaint.
The defendant nearly three months after the Instagram post went up was told it was false and libelous, and asked to retract it by Sept. 8, 2017, according to the complaint, filed in February.
The plaintiff also claims that the defendant published the false statement “with the malicious, willful and intentional purpose of inflicting emotional distress” and that the woman should have known it would cause as much.
The lawsuit seeks money as well as “punitive and exemplary” damages.
The case is scheduled for a status conference Aug. 9, according to Connecticut Judicial Branch records.
In an answer filed in March, the defendant admits to making the Instagram post but denies that she knew it was false or made with malicious intent.