Judge dismisses suit against Sonye
A California Superior Court judge dismissed defamation suit against former Rock Racing soigneur Suzanne Sonye by Kayle Leogrande, a racer on the team.
Leogrande filed suit after a recording of her telephone conversation with an anti-doping activist was posted on the Internet. In that conversation, Sonye repeated allegations outlined in an affidavit she provided to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency that Leogrande had admitted using performance-enhancing substanstes.
Judge Michael Harwin on Tuesday ruled in favor of an anti-SLAPP motion filed by Sonye’s attorney Thomas FitzGibbon. The motion was based on a California law designed to prevent so-called Strategic Law Suits Against Public Participation (SLAPP), in which plaintiffs use lawsuits or the threat of lawsuits to discourage public discussion of controversial subjects. In granting the motion, Hawin ruled that the case fell within the statute’s definition of such a suit.
Sonye provided an affidavit to USADA contending that Leogrande had confessed to doping while she was employed by Rock Racing. She later related some of those details to former professional cyclist and anti-doping activist Matt DeCanio, who recorded the conversation and posted it on his StolenUnderground website and on YouTube. Leogrande subsequently filed suit against both. Harwin’s ruling affects only the Sonye case.
Contacted by VeloNews on Wednesday, Leogrande declined to comment. His attorney, Howard Jacobs, said the ruling dealt only with the SLAPP aspect of the case and should not be viewed as a rejection of his client’s claim that Sonye’s comments were untrue.
Harwin deferred ruling on Sonye’s request that Leogrande pay her legal fees in the dispute, encouraging both sides to reach a settlement without the court’s intervention. Harwin has scheduled a case management conference for September 2.
Sonye directed interview requests to her attorney. FitzGibbon said that his client was just “very happy to put this behind her.”
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