First on Fox – U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young, who is seeking nearly $500 million in defamation lawsuit against the Associated Press, continues to urge punitive damages after he wrote that he “helped smuggling people into Afghanistan.”
Young, who successfully sued CNN earlier this year, was sued for defamation, claiming that CNN had smeared him, suggesting he made illegal profits when Biden Administration evacuated Afghanistan in 2021 when he helped people flee Afghanistan.
Young’s legal team said AP’s articles were “far further than CNN’s falsehood,” previously updated the complaint to include 40 Associated Press articles that used the term “smuggling” to describe crimes. The court had previously ruled that the young man had not taken any illegal acts.
Navy veterans seek nearly $500 million libel lawsuit against Associated Press
U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young successfully sued CNN for defamation earlier this year. (Zachary Young)
Young’s attorney Daniel Lustig notified the 14th Judicial Circuit Court in Bay County, Florida on Friday, U.S. News & World Report, WTOP News and Minnesota Tribune both canceled their republished Associated Press articles.
“Each did so shortly after receiving Plaintiffs’ letter. While none of these outlets formally admitted fault, the timing and action speak for themselves. These removals further support Plaintiffs’ argument that the Defamatory Article was understood as a criminal accusation and carried rewardal risk, and that the Associated Press’s refusal to retract or correct its version, despite having greater knowledge and post-litigation obligations, reflects express malice and deliberate disregard for the truth,” Lustig wrote in his filing in court.
“The evacuation also emphasizes the clear defamation of the slander of the reasonable publisher, emphasizing that the AP’s ongoing publication is not a kind editorial judgment, but an informed act of reputational harm,” Lustig continued. “The Associated Press’s decision to continue publishing alone also reflects reckless and knowing that it differs from the accepted standards of journalism, which further supports the actual malicious discovery.”
Navy veteran who proved CNN slandered him says he was falsely portrayed as a “smuggler”
Zachary Young, a U.S. Navy veteran who was seen here in Pakistan in the early 2000s, is suing the Associated Press for defamation.
Lustig believes that the court should authorize a claim for punitive damages.
Lustig told Fox News Digital Digital that we have now shown to the court that the Associated Press has escalated false allegations even in multiple media that trust and rely on APs to remove APs, and a Florida judge ruled that the claim was untrue,” Lustig told Fox News Digital.
“The damage to Mr Young’s reputation continues, and the AP refuses to correct records, and publicly claims that the lawsuit is frivolous is not journalism. It shows malicious intentions,” Lustig continued. “The document requires the court to treat it in this way.”
U.S. News & World Report Retracts AP articles about veteran Zachary Young, but AP supports this story
Plaintiff Zachary Young successfully claimed that CNN hinted that he made illegal profits when he fled Afghanistan on the “black market” during the Biden administration’s military evacuation from the country in 2021. (CNN/screenshot)
Indeed, the Associated Press called the lawsuit “flippant” in past statements.
An AP spokesperson previously told Fox News Digital: “The AP’s story is a factual and accurate report about Zachary Young’s jury verdict. We will vigorously defend our report against this frivolous lawsuit.”
According to the submission, Young is seeking at least $18 million in economic losses, $5-$75,000 in reputational harm, $5-100 million in emotional distress and $300 million in punitive damages.
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The Associated Press did not immediately respond to a request for further comment.
