Woman who told Rolling Stone of rape will have to turn over documents in defamation suit, judge says
A federal judge in Virginia has indicated he will require a woman who told Rolling Stone she was the victim of a gang rape to turn over her communications with the magazine to a defamation plaintiff.
U.S. District Chief Judge Glen Conrad said in court on Tuesday that he will likely grant most of the request for the documents in the suit by University of Virginia associate dean Nicole Eramo, the Washington Post (sub. req.) reports. Rolling Stone has retracted the article in which a woman known as “Jackie” alleged she was gang raped at a University of Virginia fraternity.
Jackie is not a party to the suit, and her lawyers argued her status as an alleged rape victim barred disclosure of the documents. Lawyers for Eramo said they believe texts and emails could show Jackie differed in her account of the attack to Rolling Stone and to university officials.
Conrad said he would likely require Jackie to turn over communications with the university, Rolling Stone and the author of the article about Jackie’s accusations.
Eramo alleges she was portrayed as the “chief villain” in the article and a photo illustration portrays her as wild-eyed and uncaring about rape victims.
Her lawyers said in court papers that Jackie’s rape allegations may have been designed to attract the romantic interest of another classmate in a “catfishing” scheme. Lawyers say Jackie created a fake suitor in an effort to win the classmate’s affection, and then told the classmate that the fake suitor had participated in a gang rape, according to this Washington Post story.
