Jesse Ventura wins $1.8 million in Chris Kyle defamation suit

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**Ouze**

Jesse Ventura wins $1.8 million in damages against Chris Kyle, slain Navy SEAL sniper
By Dan Lamothe

A jury in Minnesota awarded $1.845 million in damages Tuesday to former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura, deciding that he was defamed by the late Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle who said he punched Ventura out in a bar in 2006 after the former governor said the SEALs “deserved to lose a few” in war.

The news emerged after six days of deliberations in St. Paul, Minn. The award includes $500,000 in defamation damages and $1.345 million for “unjust enrichment,” according to the Star-Tribune of Minnesota. “Unjust enrichment” is typically awarded in cases in which the court finds that one person has unjustly or by chance made money at the expense of another, requiring restitution.

As outlined in this Checkpoint post, the case got its start when Ventura sued Kyle, who is billed as having the most confirmed kills by a sniper in U.S. military history. Kyle wrote in his 2012 book, “American Sniper,” that he punched out a celebrity while mourning the death of Navy SEAL and future Medal of Honor recipient, Master at Arms 2nd Class Michael Monsoor.

Kyle did not identify Ventura by name in the book, but said that he swung at the individual after he “started running his mouth about the war and everything and anything he could connect to it.” That included President George W. Bush and deployed SEALs, who “were doing the wrong thing, killing men and women and children and murdering,” the man said, according to Kyle’s book. Ventura said the whole episode was fabricated.

In this April 6, 2012, photo, former Navy SEAL and author of the book “American Sniper” poses in Midlothian, Texas. A Texas sheriff has told local newspapers that Kyle has been fatally shot along with another man on a gun range, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013. (AP Photo/The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Paul Moseley)
Kyle, who was shot to death in 2013 in Texas, alleged that he tried to get the man — identified only as “Mr. Scruff Face” — to keep it down, and he responded by saying the SEALs in the bar “deserve to a lose a few.” The man eventually took a swing at him, Kyle alleged, and all hell broke loose.

“Being level-headed and calm can last only so long,” Kyle said in his book. “I laid him out. Tables flew. Stuff happened. Scruff Face ended up on the floor.”

Kyle later said in media interviews while promoting his book that “Scruff Face” was Ventura, who served in the Navy’s Underwater Demolition Teams during the Vietnam War era. The first SEAL teams were created from UDT personnel in the 1960s, with the remaining UDT units redesignated as SEAL Delivery Vehicle Teams in the 1980s.

Legal experts had anticipated that it would be a tough case for Ventura to win. But the jury found in his favor 8-2, media reports said. Ventura’s lawyer, David B. Olsen told reporters after the verdict was read that there were no winners in the case.

“We don’t know what others may think, but certainly with this generation of young SEALs, we don’t know that his reputation can ever be repaired,” Olsen said, according to media reports.

source

**Jihadin**

Appeal. Under the impression that the jury was chuckleheads

**whembly**

Wow...

I'm changing whenever I use the #2 as taking a "Ventura".

Sue me bish!

**Noir**

So a guy writes a chapter in a book saying he kicked your ass and you talked gak and that why he kicked your ass. Then proves he was never in that bar so he couldn't of said anything to him the first place. The case ended the right way, but shouldn't the publisher have been sued too for not checking facts. My dad's friend wrote a book, where me dad was in 1 and only 1 page, they sent my dad a release for the book. So the could cover their backside, and not have to worry about, what happened here.

**Ouze**

Suing the publisher is the next step, presumably.

**cincydooley**

Does it matter that he doesn't name him in the book? That's the curious part to me.

**Jihadin**

Think there were witnesses to the event at the trial that backed up Kyle

**Ouze**

Perhaps you heard different testimony? If so, share with the class.

Rosemary DeShazo - didn't actually see a punch

Debbie Lee - didn't see a punch

John Kelly III - says he saw Ventura on the floor, but didn't see a punch. Also admits to having 15 to 20 drinks prior.

Andew Paul - saw a commotion, but didn't see a punch.

Bobby Gassoff - didn't see a punch.

cincydooley wrote:
Does it matter that he doesn't name him in the book? That's the curious part to me.

I think there was enough information that it was fairly clear that who he meant it was, even if he didn't use his name, and he did name him later on.

**Jihadin**

KK thanks for the heads up

Kyle on O'Reilly didn't say it was Ventura. Yet the discussion pretty much hinted that "Scruffy Face" was Ventura

**sebster**

What was the harm to Ventura's reputation worth $1.8m?

Was it Kyle's claim that Ventura said nasty things about SEALs? If so, were those claims disproven?

Or was it Kyle's claim that he punched out Ventura? If so, what is the harm to one's reputation that a SEAL might have beaten them up?

**Bromsy**

Yeah, it's a pretty garbage situation in general. I assume the court case went the way it did because the one neutral witness didn't see the fight - and the defendant obviously didn't show up for court.

I think that Ventura was basically able to pass off the fact that he has gone off the rails into crazy town and no one wants to be around him as 'damages' because he hasn't made the money over the last couple of years that he did before that - and the time frames just so happen to kind of overlap with the publishing of this book.

I just find it hilarious that Ventura claims that this suit isn't about money, it's about preserving his rep with the SEAL/military community. Because he is now pretty much universally despised by the military community for 'winning' this case.

**Ouze**

The class thing to do would have been to drop the suit when Chris Kyle died, regardless of if it was true or not. Alternately, amending it for costs + $1 would have been fair, if it's possible to do so (I'm not sure if it is).

**Seaward**

What a scumbag.

**Orlanth**

If Ventura was not in the bar he wasnt in the bar.

Someone else was Scruff Face. However a politician now has the rep of going to veterans bars and mouthing off against veterans. Not exactly vote appealing.

If Ventura wasnt there he had no option but to sue to maintain his reputation. He wins his damages (which is the reserve publicity of the accusation) and gets a retraction from the publisher.

The next thing to do is to waive the damages received retroactively for the benefit of Kyle's estate, but he need only do that if Kyle left a widow.

**notprop**

Of course Venture won, he's a God Dammed Sexual Tyrannosaurus!

I'm no "Legal Beagle" but I believe that's auto win in most legal fights.

**Orlanth**

notprop wrote:
Of course Venture won, he's a God Dammed Sexual Tyrannosaurus!

I'm no "Legal Beagle" but I believe that's auto win in most legal fights.

Trolling?

**sarpedons-right-hand**

Orlanth wrote:
notprop wrote:
Of course Venture won, he's a God Dammed Sexual Tyrannosaurus!

I'm no "Legal Beagle" but I believe that's auto win in most legal fights.

Trolling?

Since when did having a sense of humour count as trolling

Also, great use of a great line there notprop...

**Jihadin**

sarpedons-right-hand wrote:
Orlanth wrote:
notprop wrote:
Of course Venture won, he's a God Dammed Sexual Tyrannosaurus!

I'm no "Legal Beagle" but I believe that's auto win in most legal fights.

Trolling?

Since when did having a sense of humour count as trolling

Also, great use of a great line there notprop...

Aye it was

**Seaward**

Orlanth wrote:
If Ventura was not in the bar he wasnt in the bar.

Someone else was Scruff Face. However a politician now has the rep of going to veterans bars and mouthing off against veterans. Not exactly vote appealing.

If Ventura wasnt there he had no option but to sue to maintain his reputation. He wins his damages (which is the reserve publicity of the accusation) and gets a retraction from the publisher.

The next thing to do is to waive the damages received retroactively for the benefit of Kyle's estate, but he need only do that if Kyle left a widow.

He also has a reputation as a 9/11 truther, and that's not one he can sue to get out of, because it's accurate. I'd say the military not being fond of him is the least of his worries if he ever runs again.

And Kyle did leave a widow. Ventura changed the defendant in this case from Kyle to his wife after Kyle died.

**Frazzled**

sarpedons-right-hand wrote:
Orlanth wrote:
notprop wrote:
Of course Venture won, he's a God Dammed Sexual Tyrannosaurus!

I'm no "Legal Beagle" but I believe that's auto win in most legal fights.

Trolling?

Since when did having a sense of humour count as trolling

Also, great use of a great line there notprop...

"Win when you can, lose if you must, but always cheat."
-Jesse "the Body" Ventura. Words to live by!

**Medium of Death**

Not sure why people are getting annoyed at somebody defended their reputation if the event never happened.

The guy died but he was still lied, according to the case. I'm sure his widow won't be hard up in cash either.

The classy thing to do would be to give the money to a veteran charity.

**Frazzled**

I'm not annoyed. I just love that phrase.

**Medium of Death**

I wasn't saying you were.

Also "I ain't got time to bleed" is probably my favourite because it's followed by "Oh. Okay... *fires grenade* you got time to duck?"

**Dreadclaw69**

whembly wrote:
Sue me bish!

Are you channeling your inner Obama there whembly?

Ouze wrote:
The class thing to do would have been to drop the suit when Chris Kyle died, regardless of if it was true or not. Alternately, amending it for costs + $1 would have been fair, if it's possible to do so (I'm not sure if it is).

Agreed

**d-usa**

Isn't there a minor distinction between "suing his widow" and "suing his estate"?

**kronk**

d-usa wrote:
Isn't there a minor distinction between "suing his widow" and "suing his estate"?

Yes. It depends on how his "estate" was set up in his will, I guess. IANAL, though.

**Dreadclaw69**

d-usa wrote:
Isn't there a minor distinction between "suing his widow" and "suing his estate"?

It may depend on the local law on succession but I believe that the estate is sued before property has been dispersed to the beneficiaries, if the widow has received the property allocated to her then she is sued

**jhe90**

Given it was his widow, not classy in any form!

The man is dead, he cannot defend account so not very fair case.

**cincydooley**

jhe90 wrote:
Given it was his widow, not classy in any form!

The man is dead, he cannot defend account so not very fair case.

Don't worry. Ventura is getting killed from pretty much every vet circle. It's a little crazy.

**Ensis Ferrae**

Images like this:

Have been all over my FB feed since that verdict was brought in. As he was the former Gov. of MN, I'm not the least bit surprised things went his way. If the case had been heard in another state... probably not so much.