Truth Wins Out disputed Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) dishonest and immature portrayal today of a lawsuit filed against its President Greg Quinlan. The lawsuit was dismissed by the United States District Court in Richmond because Besen was deemed a “public figure,” which raises the bar on proving malice in defamation lawsuits. However, the outcome does not erase the fact that Quinlan is a liar who got successfully called out for lying by Truth Wins Out.
“Greg Quinlan clearly fabricated a story and continues to lie about it, showing he has deep character flaws and is unchristian,” said Truth Wins Out’s Wayne Besen. “I’m pleased that we were able to use our lawsuit to highlight his moral turpitude and unethical conduct. Our legal action hardly cost us any money, but it cost Mr. Quinlan his credibility and reputation.”
Read the full press release at Truth Wins Out.
I don’t understand why Besen’s lawyer even took this case. Surely he knew Wayne qualifies as a public figure.
@L’il Fancy
I suspect there are courts where that would be debated. Also, as I understand it as a laymen, even a public figure is protected from direct and malicious false claims. Having followed Quinlan’s statements over the years, I would question anything he said that was not thoroughly backed up by evidence. Quinlan first claimed that others had told him that Besen had made the offending statement, then later claimed that Besen told it to him in private. This would seem to make Quinlan’s claim highly suspect.
I should also note that I know of no similar statement by Besen on the record, and I’ve never heard him make such a statement in private. I do not believe the statement was made. Anyone who takes an objective look at both people and their public statements will probably come to the same conclusion, so I doubt it would be worth the money, time and effort for Besen to bring the claim again.