Former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama, Roy Moore, lost a second appeal against Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat, The Trial of the Chicago 7), Showtime, and CBS regarding a defamation lawsuit from 2018, via CNN. Moore’s want for $95M accusing Cohen of defamation was denied, once again citing victory for the British comedian and actor.
Issues between the two parties stemmed from Moore’s appearance in Showtime’s docuseries Who Is America? in which Cohen starred. Posing as an Israeli anti-terrorism expert, Cohen interviewed Moore in segment in which he aired past news clips reporting on allegations that Moore allegedly sexually assaulted a minor during his run for Senate. In addition to the clips, CNN reports Cohen then paraded a device he called a “pedophile detector” in front of Moore, pretending that the handheld device would beep if an alleged pedophile was within reach. To make the satirical sketch stick, the device began to beep once it came near Moore. At that moment Moore exited the interview.
According to CNN, three-judge panel of the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan highlighted Moore signed a waiver before the interview that prevented him from making claims of defamation, emotional stress, or fraud following the interview. Like a smaller court before them, the judges agreed the segment was meant for comedic purposes and “that no reasonable viewer would conclude otherwise.”
Moore’s lawyer Larry Klayman stated they will petition for a re-hearing as he feels the decision was rooted in political bias against Moore, according to CNN. Klayman believes the panel decided against his client – a known Republican – because two of the judges were appointed by Democratic Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. He sees this as going “far beyond Roy Moore.” Klayman also thought it should have been handled by a jury, citing that the waiver agreement was “ambiguous.”
Moore at the time of the show had been running for an empty Senate seat against Jeff Sessions when the sexual assault allegations resurfaced. Despite denying the allegations, Moore ended up losing the race.
According to CNN, Showtime declined to comment on the ruling. CBS had not yet responded.