December 03, 2008

Sachay v. Coconate

Posted September 17th, 2008 by CMLP Staff

Summary

Threat Type: Lawsuit	Date: 04/04/2008
Status: Pending	Location: Illinois
Disposition: Withdrawn	Verdict/Settlement Amount: n/a
Legal Claims: Defamation; False Light
James Sachay, former assistant commissioner of the Chicago’s aviation department, sued Frank Coconate and the Chicago Reader for defamation and false light after the Chicago Reader's Clout City blog published a comment that purported to be written by... read full description

Parties

Party Issuing Legal Threat:	Party Receiving Legal Threat:
James Sachay	Frank Coconate; The Chicago Reader
Type of Party:	Type of Party:
Individual	Individual; Organization
Location of Party:	Location of Party:
Illinois	Illinois
Legal Counsel:	Legal Counsel:
Malcolm Chester	David W. Andich (Chicago Reader); Frank Coconate (Pro Se)

Description

James Sachay, former assistant commissioner of the Chicago’s aviation department, sued Frank Coconate and the Chicago Reader for defamation and false light after the Chicago Reader's Clout City blog published a comment that purported to be written by "Sachay." According to the complaint, the comment said:

I am voting for Frank Coconate. I am sorry I challenged his petitions under false pretenses. I am sorry I stole money from Roman Pucinski. I am sorry I got illegal contracts for my son and acted criminally at O'Hare.

Sachay alleges that the comment is false and defamatory and that Frank Coconate, a political rival, posted it.

The Chicago Reader moved to dismiss the complaint, arguing that section 230 of the Communications Decency Act immunized it for publishing the statement of a third party. In June 2008, Sachay voluntarily dismissed the complaint against the Chicago Reader. The lawsuit against Coconate remains pending.

Related Links:

Details

Website(s) Involved:	Content Type(s):
Chicago Reader Blogs: Clout City	Text
Publication Medium:	Subject Area(s):
Blog	CDA 230 Defamation Third-Party Content User Comments or Submissions

Court Information & Documents

Location of Filing/Threat:	Source of Law:
Illinois	Illinois
Court Name:	Court Type:
Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois	State
Case Number:
No. 2008-CL-003932
Relevant Documents:
Sachay's Original Complaint (04-04-2008)

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Last updated on September 26th, 2008

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Sachay v. Coconate

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