Why? Even in litigious America, the law doesn’t make it easy to successfully sue a news organization or a law-enforcement agency. That’s not an accident; both institutions have margins for error, in part, so that they won’t be intimidated. Jewell’s lawyers say they have targeted NBC and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which, citing the FBI, first named him as a suspect. To win a libel suit, Jewell would have to prove the story was false–not likely, since Jewell was clearly a suspect. Beyond that, the newspaper could claim that Jewell was a public figure under libel law because he sought publicity–an argument Jewell’s lawyers dispute. As a public figure, Jewell would have the more difficult task of proving that the newspaper acted recklessly. And the media outlets presumably were relying on an official source. ““I don’t know of any cases where a reporter was held negligent for relying upon a law-enforcement official,’’ said Sandra Baron of the Libel Defense Resource Center. Jewell could make the defendants sweat by insisting he knows who the confidential sources were. That would set up an embarrassing struggle for the press and for the agents who purportedly did the leaking. A lawyer for the Constitution says the paper ““doesn’t have any exposure in the case.''
The odds of winning a suit against the FBI are extremely slim. Jewell’s lawyers believe the FBI is vulnerable legally because, they contend, the warrant to search his apartment was obtained on flimsy information. But with few exceptions, the FBI is protected from civil suits under the doctrine of sovereign immunity. Individual FBI agents enjoy a more limited immunity, but can be sued only if they clearly violated a constitutional right, like tapping a phone illegally.
Jewell’s only redress may be in the court of public opinion. But that’s a jury that doesn’t award money damages.
