From The Express-Times, Dec. 29

Lawsuit against paper tossed
Ex-Easton official sued paper, reporter over story about alleged misconduct.    

By Russ Flanagan

A Northampton County judge ruled Dec. 28 in favor of The Express-Times and one of its reporters in a 2002 lawsuit brought by a former city health official who claimed the newspaper defamed him. 

President Judge Robert A. Freedberg granted a motion for summary judgment in favor of The Express-Times, reporter Kurt Bresswein and the paper's parent companies, Penn-Jersey Advance Inc. and Easton Publishing Co., removing them from the lawsuit.

Former city Chief Health Administrator Ed Ferraro filed the civil lawsuit after The Express-Times ran an Aug. 18, 2001, story that investigated misconduct allegations made by Ferraro's ex-girlfriend Debra Bell. 

"We knew since Day One it was a frivolous lawsuit and had no merit," said Martin K. Till, president and publisher of The Express-Times. "It's frustrating that we have to waste money to fight these frivolous lawsuits. We have better things to spend our money on." 

The newspaper received a letter in August 2001 from Bell claiming Ferraro abused his power as a city official and used his position for personal gain. Among Bell's allegations were that Ferraro received free meals from city restaurants he inspected and that he accepted free car washes for his city and personal vehicles at a local car wash. Bell also accused Ferraro of using his influence as a city health official to get her fired from a waitress job. 

In his decision, Freedberg said Ferraro failed to produce sufficient evidence that the newspaper published the article with actual malice. 

Freedberg noted that Bresswein conducted "significant investigation" before writing the story and gave the persons or entities involved the opportunity to address the allegations. 

"First, we easily conclude that there is no sufficient showing that the newspaper defendants published the story with the knowledge that it was false," Freedberg wrote. "Second, we find lacking the quantum of evidence necessary to show that the newspaper defendants published the story with reckless disregard of whether or not it was false." 

Freedberg wrote in his ruling that he threw out the invasion of privacy charge for the same reason he rejected the defamation claim. 

Attorney Douglas J. Smillie, who represented The Express-Times, said he was confident the court system would absolve the newspaper of any wrongdoing. 

"We expected the court would find in our favor, but there's always a risk," Smillie said. 

Ferraro had also named Bell as a separate defendant in the lawsuit. 

According to court papers, Bell had filed a counterclaim against Ferraro claiming that he had no basis to obtain a protection-from-abuse order against her and also alleging he bilked her out of $5,000. 

Ferraro filed a motion seeking summary judgment on those counterclaims -- a motion the court granted Dec. 28. 

Freedberg said Bell did not file the counterclaim for the wrongful use of civil proceedings until several months after the two-year statute of limitations ran out. He also found there was not enough evidence to support her claim regarding misappropriated money, pointing out that a majority of her evidence came from a barroom conversation with a man she only named as "Brian." 

Bell said Dec. 28 that she had no problem with Freedberg's decision. 

Bell had retained the services of Easton attorney Joseph Hollywood but will be representing herself at the slander trial, which is slated to begin Feb. 28. She said it will not bother her to be the only defendant when the trial begins. 

"I think what the judge ruled was completely fair," she said. "The newspaper wrote down what I said and what Eddie said. There was no malice." 

Ferraro's attorney Nicholas Haros did not return a message seeking comment. Ferraro could not be reached for comment.