Minnesota Court of Appeals: Johnny Northside blog IS protected by First Amendment

It turns out that you can’t get sued for telling the truth after all.

Just when you think that humanity is doomed, something happens to make you believe that we may possibly still have a chance. I, along with many others, was shocked in March of 2011 when a jury slapped $60,000 in damages on blogger John Hoff (aka Johnny Northside) for two counts of tortious interference with Jerry Moore’s contract at the University of Minnesota — even as they dismissed a defamation claim because what Hoff wrote on his blog was “not false.” (He wrote that Jerry Moore was “involved” in a mortgage fraud case.)  Then, when Judge Denise Reilly failed to throw the case out a year ago, I just couldn’t believe it. How could you be sued for interfering with someone’s contract when the basis for your interference is making a true statement?

Well, advocates for free speech can breathe a sigh of relief, because the Minnesota Court of Appeals has reversed the jury’s decision, saying that indeed Hoff can’t be sued for saying true things. The court also found that there wasn’t evidence that there was anything besides Hoff's protected speech that interfered with Moore’s contract. You can read more about it in Abby Simmons’ report in the Star Tribune here, and Bob Collins’ analysis here, and on the Volokh Conspiracy blog. You can also read the court’s opinion here, and it is pretty concise and easy to understand. Here’s some background on the appeals case that I wrote last spring.

Paul Godfread, Hoff’s attorney, said, “We’re happy it came out the way it did. We’re relieved.” According to Godfread, Moore’s angle was that there were other actions besides Hoff’s protected speech that made up the tortious interference. The only thing Moore’s side came up with, though, was an email by Don Allen, which paralleled the information stated in Hoff’s blog. “The record was pretty thin,” Godfread said.

The ruling will be significant, according to Godfread, because it sets the precedent that you can’t use tortious interference to get around the rules on defamation cases. “They essentially used tortious interference to get a verdict when there wasn’t defamation,” he said. “There wasn’t anything except blogging and discussing what the same topic was about.”  

Here's what the Minnesota Court of Appeals wrote:

Because truth is an absolute defense to a claim for defamation, truth should also be a defense to a claim for tortious interference with a contract arising out of an allegedly defamatory statement. ...

Hoff’s blog post is the kind of speech that the First Amendment is designed to protect. He was publishing information about a public figure that he believed was true (and that the jury determined was not false) and that involved an issue of public concern. Attaching liability to this speech would infringe on Hoff’s First Amendment rights.

While many people assured John Hoff that the appeals court would rule in his favor, today was a great relief for him, Hoff said. He’s continued to blog since the ruling, and plans to continue blogging in the future. He also said that since his victory, he wants to extend a call to action for Pussy Riot, the punk rock group that has been sent to prison in Russia for speaking out. “I hope very much people pay attention to their plight,” he said.

Jerry Moore’s attorney, Jill Clark, did not respond to an email in time for publication of this article. A voicemail at her office states “Jill Clark is not available and is expected to be not available for an extended period of time.” Jill Clark ran for the Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court this year, but was not among the top two vote-getters in the August 14 primary election, so her name will not appear on the ballot. She has also faced some legal trouble herself, as reported on Johnny Northside.

• Great article Sheila Regan! - by Douglas K. Limon on Mon, 08/20/2012 - 11:20pm
• Glad to see this result. Thanks for sharing, Sheila. - by Elizabeth Patton on Tue, 08/21/2012 - 8:32am
• If anybody out there cares to quibble about that word "involved," keep in mind Jerry Moore is named in a civil suit that came out of the mortgage fraud and is being sued over it right now. - by John Hoff on Tue, 08/21/2012 - 1:01pm
• Congratulations to John Hoff on having his judgment reversed. I am certain he is relieved. The Minnesota Court of Appeals clearly had to balance constitutional protections against the claims of the Plaintiff. But to know this case, you really have to understand what the jury heard. And that was that John Hoff was a sadistic predator that had a documented 10+ year history of using the internet, blogs, online forums and groups, and print media to harass intimidate, degrade, threaten, and victimize people he didn’t like or had a disagreement with. John Hoff made a name for himself in his north Minneapolis community by writing a blog under the name “Johnny Northside”. Early articles centered on absentee landlords who neglected their rental properties. Hoff tried to look like a hero by posting photos of him boarding up vacant houses until city officials told him to stop. He then went on to target any property owner with code violations, or that had “criminals” living at that address, posting photos of the property and mug shots of the residents. He would also “stake out” certain homes and photograph the people as they came and went. Hoff used, and still uses the Internet to cyber stalk people by searching social media to learn where they live, work, and play then he makes their lives a living hell. He will send messages and emails to his victim’s friends and family spreading defamatory information. He will publish derogatory (and sometimes false) blog posts claiming to have obtained the information from “confidential” sources he refuses to name. And if Hoff doesn’t get satisfaction from attacking his victim, he will write offensive blog posts about his victim’s friends and family in an attempt to have those friends alienate his victim. To hear or read about Hoff’s history of abuse makes you wonder why he hasn’t been arrested or sued previously. The lengths that John Hoff takes to victimize people are absolutely astounding. What is even more mind boggling is that Hoff firmly believes he has the right to harass and intimidate people because his blogging is free speech, protected by the 1st Amendment of the US Constitution. What John Hoff did to Jerry Moore, the Plaintiff in this case, was accomplished in typical John Hoff fashion. He was not providing a “public service” (as he claimed during trial) in informing the University of Minnesota about some irregularities in Mr. Moore’s background, rather he was making a malicious attempt to make Moore’s life miserable by getting him fired from his new position at the University. And just to make sure officials at the University took the information seriously, he threatened to blackmail the UofM by informing them that if they didn’t fire Mr. Moore, Hoff would publish a series of negative articles about the University. Moore was fired with days. The only reason this case was reversed was because Hoff was involved with a co-conspirator and defendant, Donald Allen (who settled prior to trial), and their actions were so closely entwined that they could not be separated. The problem with this reversal by the Minnesota Court of Appeals is that now Hoff believes he has an unlimited license to harass people under protection of the 1st Amendment. The very first thing he did after blogging about his “colossal win” was to send an intimidating email to his nemesis, Jim Watkins, who writes an “Anti-Johnny” blog, threatening to continue writing about his acquaintances: http://misadventuresofjohnnynorthside.blogspot.com/2012/08/moore-v-hoff-minnesota-appeals-court.html. In an interesting turn of events, John Hoff the self-proclaimed neighborhood revitalizer who reports his neighbors for housing code violations has been hit with administrative orders and could face fines from the City of Minneapolis to bring his house up to code. When he bought the home on 26th & Bryant Avenue North in 2008 it didn't have a functioning furnace or water heater, and was missing considerable plumbing. Without obtaining the required building permits he made unauthorized repairs to the home which he now rents out without the required rental license. Recently, the City of Minneapolis issued orders to have the house brought up to code and to be in compliance with the Truth in Housing report filed before he bought the house. His failure to bring o up to code will result in fines, and possible condemnation. Currently, Hoff is an absentee slumlord renting out his out-of-compliance house to two people he calls “roommates”, even though he hasn’t lived in the house for over one year. According to Hoff’s neighbors they have not seen his in months, some claiming the only people seen around the house have been his two renters. It’s worth pointing out that the house only has two bedrooms, and if Hoff were actually living there and each had his own bedroom, one bedroom would be unauthorized under building code. Neighbors have asked why the city hasn’t cracked down on him sooner. Hoff is personal friends with Councilmember Don Samuels who chairs the powerful Public Safety Committee, and that Samuels even testified on Hoff’s behalf at a recent civil trial. John Hoff himself has written in his blog that he sends Samuels “trinkets of nominal value” to show his appreciation. This situation appears to have the appearance of impropriety. - by Dave Timmons on Tue, 08/21/2012 - 1:57pm
• Congratulations to John Hoff on having his judgment reversed. I am certain he is relieved. The Minnesota Court of Appeals clearly had to balance constitutional protections against the claims of the Plaintiff. But to know this case, you really have to understand what the jury heard. And that was that John Hoff was a sadistic predator that had a documented 10+ year history of using the internet, blogs, online forums and groups, and print media to harass intimidate, degrade, threaten, and victimize people he didn’t like or had a disagreement with. John Hoff made a name for himself in his north Minneapolis community by writing a blog under the name “Johnny Northside”. Early articles centered on absentee landlords who neglected their rental properties. Hoff tried to look like a hero by posting photos of him boarding up vacant houses until city officials told him to stop. He then went on to target any property owner with code violations, or that had “criminals” living at that address, posting photos of the property and mug shots of the residents. He would also “stake out” certain homes and photograph the people as they came and went. Hoff used, and still uses the Internet to cyber stalk people by searching social media to learn where they live, work, and play then he makes their lives a living hell. He will send messages and emails to his victim’s friends and family spreading defamatory information. He will publish derogatory (and sometimes false) blog posts claiming to have obtained the information from “confidential” sources he refuses to name. And if Hoff doesn’t get satisfaction from attacking his victim, he will write offensive blog posts about his victim’s friends and family in an attempt to have those friends alienate his victim. To hear or read about Hoff’s history of abuse makes you wonder why he hasn’t been arrested or sued previously. The lengths that John Hoff takes to victimize people are absolutely astounding. What is even more mind boggling is that Hoff firmly believes he has the right to harass and intimidate people because his blogging is free speech, protected by the 1st Amendment of the US Constitution. What John Hoff did to Jerry Moore, the Plaintiff in this case, was accomplished in typical John Hoff fashion. He was not providing a “public service” (as he claimed during trial) in informing the University of Minnesota about some irregularities in Mr. Moore’s background, rather he was making a malicious attempt to make Moore’s life miserable by getting him fired from his new position at the University. And just to make sure officials at the University took the information seriously, he threatened to blackmail the UofM by informing them that if they didn’t fire Mr. Moore, Hoff would publish a series of negative articles about the University. Moore was fired with days. The only reason this case was reversed was because Hoff was involved with a co-conspirator and defendant, Donald Allen (who settled prior to trial), and their actions were so closely entwined that they could not be separated. The problem with this reversal by the Minnesota Court of Appeals is that now Hoff believes he has an unlimited license to harass people under protection of the 1st Amendment. The very first thing he did after blogging about his “colossal win” was to send an intimidating email to his nemesis, Jim Watkins, who writes an “Anti-Johnny” blog, threatening to continue writing about his acquaintances: http://misadventuresofjohnnynorthside.blogspot.com/2012/08/moore-v-hoff-minnesota-appeals-court.html. In an interesting turn of events, John Hoff the self-proclaimed neighborhood revitalizer who reports his neighbors for housing code violations has been hit with administrative orders and could face fines from the City of Minneapolis to bring his house up to code. When he bought the home on 26th & Bryant Avenue North in 2008 it didn't have a functioning furnace or water heater, and was missing considerable plumbing. Without obtaining the required building permits he made unauthorized repairs to the home which he now rents out without the required rental license. Recently, the City of Minneapolis issued orders to have the house brought up to code and to be in compliance with the Truth in Housing report filed before he bought the house. His failure to bring o up to code will result in fines, and possible condemnation. Currently, Hoff is an absentee slumlord renting out his out-of-compliance house to two people he calls “roommates”, even though he hasn’t lived in the house for over one year. According to Hoff’s neighbors they have not seen his in months, some claiming the only people seen around the house have been his two renters. It’s worth pointing out that the house only has two bedrooms, and if Hoff were actually living there and each had his own bedroom, one bedroom would be unauthorized under building code. Neighbors have asked why the city hasn’t cracked down on him sooner. Hoff is personal friends with Councilmember Don Samuels who chairs the powerful Public Safety Committee, and that Samuels even testified on Hoff’s behalf at a recent civil trial. John Hoff himself has written in his blog that he sends Samuels “trinkets of nominal value” to show his appreciation. This situation appears to have the appearance of impropriety. - by on Tue, 08/21/2012 - 9:12pm