Twin Coast Newspapers, Inc. v. Superior Court

I

In a libel case, by statute, a newspaper owner, by publishing a sufficient retraction, gains immunity from liability for general or punitive damages, remaining responsible only for any special damages suffered by the defamed plaintiff. To be sufficient for this purpose, the retraction must appear “in substantially as conspicuous a manner in said newspaper ... as were the statements claimed to be libelous.” (Civ. Code, § 48a.) The issues presented in this mandate proceeding are whether the sufficiency of the retraction is a question for court or for jury, and, if the latter, whether undisputed facts nonetheless compel the conclusion that the retractions published by petitioners were adequate as a matter of law. The superior court agreed with plaintiffs that the issue must be resolved by the jury, and the defendants seek a writ.

II.

On August 19, 1987, in a sensationally brutal attack, a woman and her six-year-old daughter were immolated; two suspects were arrested and accused of the crime. On August 20, the Long Beach Press-Telegram, owned by petitioner Twin Coast Newspapers, Inc., printed a front-page article containing a false report that one of the arrested…