{"id":2392188,"date":"2025-01-18T17:36:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-18T22:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fed-up-judge-savaged-cnn-attorney-in-networks-disastrous-defamation-case-this-isnt-kindergarten\/"},"modified":"2025-01-18T17:38:34","modified_gmt":"2025-01-18T22:38:34","slug":"fed-up-judge-savaged-cnn-attorney-in-networks-disastrous-defamation-case-this-isnt-kindergarten","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fed-up-judge-savaged-cnn-attorney-in-networks-disastrous-defamation-case-this-isnt-kindergarten\/","title":{"rendered":"Fed-up Judge Savaged CNN Attorney in Network\u2019s Disastrous Defamation Case: &#8216;This Isn&#8217;t Kindergarten&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffed-up-judge-savaged-cnn-attorney-in-networks-disastrous-defamation-case-this-isnt-kindergarten%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2392188&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A Florida judge has strongly criticized CNN&#8217;s lead attorney, David axelrod, during a defamation \u200blawsuit \u2063involving \u2063Zachary Young, \u2064a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/human-experimentation-and-gene-editing-inside-chinas-race-to-create-genetically-modified-soldiers\/\" title=\"Human Experimentation And Gene-Editing: Inside China\u2019s Race To Create Genetically Modified Soldiers\">security consultant<\/a> who alleges\u200b CNN harmed\u2064 his reputation by labeling him an &#8220;illegal\u200d profiteer&#8221;\u2064 in a November 2021 report. The case concluded with a jury awarding Young $5 million\u200b in damages for \u2064lost \u200dbusiness and personal suffering.\u2062 Judge William Henry expressed \u200cfrustration over what he termed &#8220;blatant misrepresentations&#8221; by CNN\u2019s legal team, stating that their credibility was severely lacking. He demanded an apology for\u200d calling \u2064Young a \u2063liar and emphasized that the trial should not be about &#8220;who can \u2064sling the most \u2062mud.&#8221; Following\u200d the verdict, CNN and Young\u2063 reached an undisclosed\u2063 settlement regarding punitive\u200d damages.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Along the way to CNN losing a major defamation lawsuit, the attorney representing the network received a blistering rebuke from the Florida judge overseeing the case.<\/p>\n<p>Zachary Young, who is a security consultant, sued the network alleging CNN &ldquo;destroyed his reputation and business&rdquo; by branding him an &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cnn-ordered-to-pay-navy-veteran-after-losing-big-defamation-case\/\" title=\"CNN Ordered to Pay Navy Veteran After Losing Big Defamation Case\">illegal profiteer&#038;rdquo<\/a>; who exploited &ldquo;desperate Afghans&rdquo; during a Nov. 11, 2021, report by the network&rsquo;s senior national security correspondent Alex Marquardt on CNN&rsquo;s &ldquo;The Lead with Jake Tapper,&rdquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/media\/jury-finds-that-cnn-committed-defamation-against-navy-veteran-awards-punitive-damages\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> Fox News<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n<p>The Panama City jury on Friday <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/cnn-ordered-pay-navy-veteran-losing-big-defamation-case\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">awarded<\/a> Young $5 million in damages, including $4 million in lost business and $1 million in personal damages.<\/p>\n<p>The jury was also set to decide what punitive damages <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/desperate-cnn-set-undergo-significant-programming-overhaul-big-names-impacted\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CNN<\/a> should also pay, but Fox reported that an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/woman-at-center-of-2006-duke-lacrosse-rape-case-admits-entire-story-was-a-fabrication\/\" title=\"Woman at Center of 2006 Duke Lacrosse Rape Case Admits Entire Story Was a Fabrication\">undisclosed settlement amount<\/a> was reached following the jury verdict.<\/p>\n<p>Two days before the verdict, Fourteenth Judicial Circuit Court Judge William Henry tore into David Axelrod, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/cnns-jake-tapper-accused-lying-sworn-deposition-x-posts-get-turned\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">lead attorney<\/a> for CNN, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/lawandcrime.com\/high-profile\/im-tired-of-these-blatant-misrepresentations-judge-blows-up-at-cnns-lead-attorney-during-defamation-case-and-says-he-owes-navy-veteran-an-apology-for-calling-him-a-liar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Law and Crime.<\/a><\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m overly concerned with the level of professionalism or lack thereof that&rsquo;s here,&rdquo; Henry said after complaining about misrepresentations coming from the defense.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Right now your credibility with me, Mr. Axelrod, is about none. If you understand that?&rdquo; the judge said.<\/p>\n<p>In one bit of back-and-forth, Henry said he would have what Axelrod said read back if necessary.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Your honor, the point I&rsquo;m trying to make &hellip;&rdquo; Axelrod began<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m tired of these blatant misrepresentations that are being made,&rdquo; Henry said, adding a dig at defense attorney Devin Freedman as well.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;And they&rsquo;re being made by both of y&rsquo;all. And maybe they&rsquo;re not 100 percent lies. Maybe they&rsquo;re leaving out a little bit of the truth. And making representations, so you can carefully say: &lsquo;Well, I didn&rsquo;t exactly say that,&rsquo;&rdquo; Henry said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We don&rsquo;t lawyer like this around here,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t play the shenanigans anymore in this case.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-embed\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Judge Blows Up on CNN Lawyer for Lying: &lsquo;Your Credibility Is About None&rsquo;\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BuqZFye_pgk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Henry said he was irked by <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">late-breaking discovery efforts<\/a> concerning evidence introduced late in the game.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This isn&rsquo;t kindergarten. Y&rsquo;all matriculated from kindergarten a long, long time ago,&rdquo; he told Axelrod, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/media\/cnn-defamation-trial-judge-scolds-cnns-lead-counsel-orders-apology-plaintiff-this-isnt-kindergarten\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fox News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Henry teed off on Axelrod in connection with disputes over Young&rsquo;s defunct security clearance.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Mr. Axelrod, I don&rsquo;t know how many times in this transcript, I didn&rsquo;t bring the paper back with me, how many times you called Mr. Young a liar. But yet, in his deposition, he acknowledged having his security being held by Helios Global. Which is exactly what that document is and exactly what he testified to,&rdquo; Henry said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think an apology from you is clearly in order to Mr. Young for the number of times in front of this court, and streamed around the world, that you called Mr. Young a liar,&rdquo; Henry said..<\/p>\n<p>Henry noted that<a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/cnn-hit-giant-300-million-defamation-lawsuit\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> the case<\/a> would not be decided by &ldquo;who can sling the most mud.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the course of CNN&#8217;s significant defamation lawsuit loss, the network&#8217;s attorney faced severe criticism from a Florida judge. Zachary Young, a security consultant, filed a lawsuit claiming that CNN &#8220;ruined his reputation and business&#8221; by labeling him an &#8220;illegal profiteer&#8221; who took advantage of &#8220;desperate Afghans&#8221; in a report aired on November 11, 2021. A jury in Panama City awarded Young $5 million in damages\u2014$4 million for lost business and $1 million for personal harm. Although the jury was expected to determine additional punitive damages, an undisclosed settlement was reached after their verdict. Just two days prior to this decision, Judge William Henry expressed his frustration with David Axelrod, CNN&#8217;s lead attorney, criticizing the lack of professionalism and misrepresentations from the defense team<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2392189,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Picture-2025-01-18T135133.731.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[9373,48264,48635,5387,33211],"class_list":["post-2392188","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-cnn","tag-courtroom-drama","tag-defamation-case","tag-judge","tag-legal-news"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Picture-2025-01-18T135133.731.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2392188","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2392188"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2392188\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2392192,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2392188\/revisions\/2392192"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2392189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2392188"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2392188"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2392188"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}