Sacha Baron Cohen beats ex-judge Roy Moore's defamation appeal
Sacha Baron Cohen on Thursday defeated an appeal by former Alabama judge Roy
Moore who had accused the British comedian of defamation for falsely portraying
him as a pedophile in an interview for the show “Who Is America?”
In a 3-0 vote, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said the interview
was constitutionally protected speech, agreeing with a lower court judge that it
was “clearly comedy and that no reasonable viewer would conclude otherwise.”
The court also said Moore waived his right to pursue his $95 million lawsuit by
signing a standard consent agreement before the interview, which he knew would be televised.
It also dismissed related claims by Moore’s wife, Kayla.