Most of the cops were offended by the nicknames that Afroman assigned them. But none of them could prove that anything Afroman said was false or caused them economic harm.
In Afroman’s memo, he counted the most surprising times when cops failed to prove his exaggerated statements weren’t true. For example, one officer, Randy Walters, was offended that Afroman said he slept with his wife, but curiously did not testify that this was false. Instead, Walters only testified that “he would hope that his wife would not have extramarital affairs,” Afroman’s memo said.
“The use of his word, hope, is nebulous and renders the statement by the Defendant such that the truth cannot be proven,” the memo said. “If that cannot be proven, then it is an opinion.”
Amusing many social media onlookers, at the trial, Walters—whom Afroman called “Gomer Pyle” after the slow-to-pick-up-on-things Andy Griffith Show character—also testified that there was no way to prove he wasn’t a “son of a bitch.” His mother had been dead “for years,” Walters testified.
Similarly, Newland testified that while “nasty,” he believed that Afroman’s insults were based on the rapper’s opinions. And in Phillips’ case, Afroman’s comments were deemed impolite but not defamatory. Additionally, Shawn Cooley, the subject of Afroman’s hit “Lemon Pound Cake,” testified that no reasonable person would think that “Officer Pound Cake” was a “major misrepresentation” of his character, Afroman’s memo said.
“In Ohio, allegedly defamatory statements that constitute opinion enjoy an absolute privilege and may not give rise to a cause of action for defamation,” Afroman successfully argued.
For anyone looking for clips from the trial, you can practically watch the whole thing on independent journalist Meghann Cuniff’s Instagram. Clips include testimony from Afroman and each officer, as well as lawyers arguing what Judge Jonathan Hein called “an emotional case.”
Among those clips is one of Afroman’s lawyer, Osborne, reminding jurors that Afroman “exaggerates for the sake of entertainment. That’s who he is. I’m not going to say it’s tasteful to everyone, but some people do find it entertaining.”
“A reasonable person knows that people can post opinions, social commentary, and hurtful things all over the Internet, and it is just to be expected. That’s why we are supposed to use our own filter, use our common sense, use our experiences in life,” Osborne said.
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