Sparks

BACKGROUND

On July 2, 2013, Sparks filed a complaint against CBS, alleging claims for libel and intentional infliction of emotional distress, based upon an article CBS published on August 14, 2012. The article described a hearing in the superior court in which the court granted a restraining order against Sparks, ordering him to stay 300 yards away from singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow and film executive Harvey Weinstein. The complaint alleges the article contained three defamatory statements: (1) that a union representative said that Sparks told her he was going to shoot Crow and Weinstein; (2) that forensic psychiatrist Dr. David Glaser interviewed Sparks and determined Sparks was “imminently dangerous”; and (3) that Dr. Glaser made a diagnosis that Sparks is “unambiguously delusional.” The complaint alleges these statements are false because Sparks never told anyone he was going to shoot Crow or Weinstein, and Dr. Glaser only spoke briefly to Sparks in a casual conversation, and did not interview him in any professional capacity. The complaint also alleges that the article was not a fair and accurate report of the court proceedings because it failed to include facts favorable to…