Cisneros v. Sanchez

Robert Sanchez lost an election for City Commissioner in Brownsville, Texas, but kept the forum on his campaign website active after the election. Elena Cisneros, the wife of Sanchez's former opponent, sued Sanchez for defamation in Texas state court claiming that pseudonymous users of the site posted statements stating that she had used cocaine.

Cisneros claimed that Sanchez had posted some of the statements under a pseudonym, and that he was responsible for the postings of others because he had refused to remove them, even though he was aware of their defamatory character.

Sanchez removed the case to federal court on grounds that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (47 U.S.C. § 230(c)) protected him from liability. On Cisneros's motion to remand, the federal court held that, as an affirmative defense, CDA 230 did not provide proper grounds for removal of the action to federal court when the parties were both from Texas and the plaintiff had asserted only state law claims for relief. The court therefore remanded the case to state court, and the parties then reportedly settled the case for $150,000. Sanchez issued a full apology and retraction.