The Second Department determined the media-defendant (WPIX) in a defamation action was entitled to absolute immunity under the Civil Rights Law. The action stemmed from news reports which included the plaintiff’s photograph and stated the police were looking for the plaintiff in connection with an attempted rape. The final report stated that another had been arrested but plaintiff’s photograph was included in that report as well:
… [T]he Supreme Court properly determined that the plaintiff’s allegation that the subject news reports were published without privilege was not a fact at all, because WPIX’s evidentiary submissions established that the news reports were absolutely privileged pursuant to Civil Rights Law § 74. That statute provides, in pertinent part, that “[a] civil action cannot be maintained . . . for the publication of a fair and true report of any judicial proceeding, legislative proceeding or other official proceeding” (Civil Rights Law § 74). Contrary to the plaintiff’s contention, the police investigation of the attempted rape constituted an “official proceeding” under the statute … . Further, the subject news reports were substantially accurate reports of the information provided by the NYPD in its press releases … .
The privilege is not defeated by the NYPD’s error in identifying the plaintiff by his photograph as the assailant. The statute “was designed precisely to protect the publisher of a fair and true report from liability for just such an error and to relieve it of any duty to expose the error through its own investigation” … . Rodriguez v Daily News, L.P., 2016 NY Slip Op 06071, 2nd Dept 9-21-16
DEFAMATION (NEWS REPORTS CONNECTING PLAINTIFF TO AN ATTEMPTED RAPE ABSOLUTELY PRIVILEGED UNDER CIVIL RIGHTS LAW, REPORTS ACCURATELY REFLECTED INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE POLICE)/PRIVILEGE (DEFAMATIION, NEWS REPORTS CONNECTING PLAINTIFF TO AN ATTEMPTED RAPE ABSOLUTELY PRIVILEGED UNDER CIVIL RIGHTS LAW, REPORTS ACCURATELY REFLECTED INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE POLICE)/CIVIL RIGHTS LAW(NEWS REPORTS CONNECTING PLAINTIFF TO AN ATTEMPTED RAPE ABSOLUTELY PRIVILEGED UNDER CIVIL RIGHTS LAW, REPORTS ACCURATELY REFLECTED INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE POLICE)