Marcelo Rodriguez v. Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou

314 F.3d 979 Marcelo RODRIGUEZ, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Georgios Kyriacos PANAYIOTOU, Defendant-Appellee. No. 00-56923. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted August 6, 2002. Filed December 3, 2002. COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED Richard F.G. Thomas, Hermosa Beach, CA, for the plaintiff-appellant. Jeffrey M. Tillotson, Dallas, TX, for the defendant-appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California; Consuelo B. Marshall, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CV 99-10576 CBM. Before REINHARDT, TROTT, and TASHIMA, Circuit Judges. Opinion by Judge TASHIMA; Dissent by Judge REINHARDT. OPINION TASHIMA, Circuit Judge. 1 Plaintiff-Appellant Marcelo Rodriguez ("Rodriguez") brought this action against Defendant-Appellee Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, aka George Michael ("Michael"), for slander per se and intentional infliction of emotional distress, based on statements made by Michael in magazine and television interviews regarding Rodriguez's 1998 arrest of Michael, and the lyrics and video of Michael's newly-released song Outside. 1 The action was dismissed with prejudice for failure to state a claim upon which relief could…

Opinion by Judge TASHIMA; Dissent by Judge REINHARDT.

OPINION

Plaintiff-Appellant Marcelo Rodriguez (“Rodriguez”) brought this action against Defendant Appellee Georgios Kyriaeos Pa-nayiotou, aka George Michael (“Michael”), for slander per se and intentional infliction of emotional distress, based on statements made by Michael in magazine and television interviews regarding Rodriguez’s 1998 arrest of Michael, and the lyrics and video of Michael’s newly-released song Outside. 1 The action was dismissed with prejudice for failure to state a claim upon which *982 relief could be granted. Rodriguez timely appeals. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we reverse and remand for further proceedings.

I. BACKGROUND

On April 7, 1998, Rodriguez, a police officer for the City of Beverly Hills, California, was working with his partner in Will Rogers Park in Beverly Hills due to complaints of lewd acts taking place in the men’s restroom. Rodriguez entered the park’s restroom after observing Michael enter. As he exited one of the stalls, Rodriguez saw Michael fully exposed and engaging in a lewd act. Rodriguez left the restroom, and he and his partner arrested Michael, as…

dissenting:

George Michael responded to press inquiries regarding what he thought to be unfair police practices. In the course of several colorful interviews, he described the circumstances of his arrest by a Beverly Hills Police officer, alleging that he had fallen prey to police entrapment. Michael — a successful celebrity with deep pockets — now finds himself subject to a lawsuit alleging defamation. By allowing the suit to proceed, the majority gives law enforcement officers a tool to silence speech on a topic of critical public importance — police misconduct. Under California law, Michael’s speech criticizing the manner of his arrest at the hands of the police deserves more protection. Accordingly, I respectfully dissent.

I

Police officers serve in unique positions of public trust. They are charged with protecting individual security and safeguarding individual rights, and are therefore legally authorized to use a level of coercive force not afforded to the lay population. Most officers exercise this privilege responsibly and with great care. Some, occasionally, do not. See, e.g., United States v. City of Los Angeles, 288 F.3d 391 (9th Cir.2002) (describing the Los Angeles…