UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
AMENDED COMPLAINT FOR LIBEL AND SLANDER AND FOR INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL
DISTRESS BY EXTREME AND OUTRAGEOUS CONDUCT
Robert Christian Wolf, by his undersigned attorneys, respectfully states his Amended Complaint for Libel and Slander and for Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress by Extreme and Outrageous Conduct against John Bennett Ramsey and Patricia Paugh Ramsey as follows:
Statement of the Case
On the night of December 25, 1996, or during the early morning hours of December 26, 1996, the defendant Patsy Ramsey sexually assaulted, and killed her daughter JonBenet Ramsey, either accidentally or intentionally, in their Boulder, Colorado home. In an elaborate and transparent attempt to cover up her crime, Patsy Ramsey prepared a handwritten kidnap ransom note in the hope of making her crime look like the work of a third party intruder. Over the next three and one half years,
Patsy Ramsey, along with the knowing help of her husband, defendant John Ramsey, willfully,
intentionally, maliciously, and with a reckless disregard for the truth, directed suspicion away from herself by hiring private detectives to investigate the personal lives of innocent Boulder citizens such as the plaintiff Robert Christian Wolf, turning that information over to the Boulder Police and District Attorney in the hope of encouraging the authorities to arrest the plaintiff for the murder of her daughter. Although the plaintiff has been cleared of all suspicion by authorities, the defendants continue to this day in their efforts to cast suspicion upon the plaintiff by publishing a book in which
the plaintiff is publicly named as a murder suspect in the brutal sexual assault and horrific slaughter of their daughter. The defendants have also repeated this false allegation against the plaintiff in
television interviews promoting their book. Because of the defendants' conduct, which was certain, or substantially certain, to cause severe emotional distress, and which is so extreme, outrageous and shocking that it is intolerable and goes beyond all possible bounds of decency in a civilized society,
the plaintiff has suffered extreme humiliation, embarrassment, and emotional distress as a result of the defendants' having made him the unwanted focus of a murder investigation into the sexual assault and death of a six year girl. The defendants' conduct has caused the plaintiff to be shunned, hated, ridiculed and held in contempt by members of his community. He has suffered and continues to suffer substantial injury as a result of the false accusations made against him by the defendants. The plaintiff seeks general and punitive damages for libel and slander and the intentional infliction of
emotional distress by extreme and outrageous conduct.
The Parties
1. Plaintiff Robert Christian Wolf resides in Boulder, Colorado.
Jurisdiction and Venue
7. This Court has original subject matter jurisdiction with respect to this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C.1332 as there exists complete diversity of citizenship between plaintiff and defendants and the amount in controversy exceeds Seventy Five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), exclusive of interest
and costs.
8. Defendant John Bennett Ramsey is domiciled in the State of Georgia and is subject to the
jurisdiction of this Court. Venue is proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1391.Defendant Patricia Paugh Ramsey is domiciled in the State of Georgia and is subject to the jurisdiction of this Court. Venue is proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1391.
General Allegations
On the night of December 25, 1996 or during the early morning hours of December 26, 1996, defendant Patricia Paugh Ramsey (Patsy Ramsey) killed her daughter JonBenet Ramsey, either accidentally or intentionally, in the defendants' home at 755 15th Street, Boulder,
Colorado. According to the Boulder County coroner's autopsy report, JonBenet received a massive head wound before dying of strangulation from a nylon cord tied around her neck. The coroner found that there was evidence to suggest that JonBenet's vagina had been assaulted and digitally penetrated sometime before her death.
11. In an elaborate and transparent attempt to cover up her crime, Patsy Ramsey wrote a three page ransom note in the hope of making her crime look more like the work of a third party intruder bent on kidnapping and/or sexually molesting her daughter, than like the work of a parent who flew into a rage and assaulted their child.
12. Three questioned document examiners, a forensic linguistics expert, and a Boulder police detective have since determined that defendant Patsy Ramsey was the author of the ransom note found at the scene of JonBenet Ramsey's murder. (Exhibit 1)
13. In order to further cover up her crime, Patsy Ramsey, along with the help of her husband John Ramsey, gave the Boulder Police Department and the Boulder District Attorney's office the names of people who she declared should be "suspects" in the killing of her daughter. As a result of the sensational nature of the crime, and the tearful protestations of innocence by Patsy Ramsey on
national television, this case has been subject to massive international media coverage, the likes of which have not been seen since the Lindbergh baby kidnapping or the O.J. Simpson case.
14. John and Patsy Ramsey gave Boulder law enforcement the names of these innocent people
willfully and maliciously and with reckless disregard for the truth. John and Patsy Ramsey knew, or should have known, that their conduct in covering up her crime was certain, or substantially certain,to cause severe emotional distress in the people who would become, as a result of the defendants'
accusations, police "suspects," and, consequently, the subject of intensive and intrusive law enforcement investigation and worldwide media coverage.
15. Upon information and belief, innocent "suspects" were required to submit to police demands that they produce samples of their blood, hair, saliva and handwriting, while, at the same time, being subjected to intrusive police questioning into their private lives. Frequently, a "suspect's" neighbors would be interrogated by the police with respect to the "suspect's" general character and demeanor,
often to the "suspect's" extreme embarrassment and emotional suffering. "Suspects" were also the subject of unwanted and often unflattering media attention and speculation.
16. Patsy Ramsey, along with the defendant John Ramsey, went on national television several times and "warned" the American public that "there is a killer on the loose." John and Patsy Ramsey repeated these statements in a television documentary, at various press conferences, in newspaper interviews, and in a book they co-authored called The Death of Innocence: The Untold Story of JonBenet's Murder and How Its Exploitation Compromised the Pursuit of Truth. (Thomas Nelson,
2000). Patsy Ramsey, willfully, maliciously, and with reckless disregard for the truth, has repeatedly denied any involvement in the death of her daughter despite knowing these statements to be untrue. Defendant John Ramsey also denies any knowledge of the circumstances surrounding his daughter's death, and he has publicly proclaimed a belief in his wife Patsy's innocence. In their book The Death of Innocence John Ramsey describes a profile of what he and Patsy believe to be the characteristics of the person who murdered their daughter. John Ramsey knows, or should reasonably know, that his wife is lying about her responsibility for his daughter's
death
18. John and Patsy Ramsey have hired private detectives to investigate and check into the private lives and backgrounds of these bogus murder "suspects," invading the privacy of these individuals through their private investigators, while providing Boulder authorities with information on these
"suspects' in what has been, and continues to be, a blatant attempt to direct suspicion away from Mrs. Ramsey. The defendants have done all of this, willfully and maliciously, and with the intent of encouraging the authorities to arrest an innocent person for a crime that Patsy Ramsey has committed.
19. From December 26, 1996 until the present time, John and Patsy Ramsey have been and continue to be engaged, willfully, maliciously, and with reckless disregard for the truth, in a continuing course of conduct designed to direct suspicion away from Mrs. Ramsey by providing the Boulder district
attorney's office, the police, and the general public, through the efforts of their private investigators, through interviews on national television, a documentary, and a book, with the names of innocent people, who, because of this continuing course of conduct, have suffered extreme emotional distress as the result of their being publicly named, and privately being investigated, by the John and Patsy Ramsey, as "suspects" in the brutal homicide of a six year girl who may have been sexually assaulted in the process.
20. John and Patsy Ramsey have engaged in this continuing course of conduct willfully and
maliciously, knowing full well that Patsy Ramsey was responsible for the death of her daughter.
21. Beginning on or about September 1997, and, upon information and belief, continuing until the present time, private investigators working on behalf of, and at the direction of, John and Patsy Ramsey, have urged and continue to urge the Boulder authorities to investigate the plaintiff, Robert Christian Wolf (Chris Wolf), as a possible murder suspect in the death of their daughter in the hope that he would be arrested and charged with the murder of their daughter. The defendants have done this, and continue to do it, willfully and maliciously, knowing full well that the plaintiff is innocent and
that Patsy Ramsey has killed JonBenet Ramsey. Prior to December 26, 1996, and at all times
subsequent to the murder of JonBenet Ramsey, Chris Wolf has been a private citizen and has never attained the status of a public figure for the purposes of filing and prosecuting an action for libel and slander.
22. On or about August and September 1997, and, upon information and belief, continuing until the present time, private investigators, working at the direction of the defendants, intrusively invaded the privacy of the plaintiff by investigating the private life of the plaintiff, giving the material they
had gathered on him to Boulder law enforcement authorities in an attempt to draw suspicion away from Patsy Ramsey with the hope that such information would encourage the police to arrest and charge Chris Wolf for the sexual assault and murder of JonBenet Ramsey.
23. On page 329 of their book The Death of Innocence, which was published in Boulder, Colorado and Atlanta, Georgia on March 17, 2000, the defendants write: "By March 1, 1999, we had reported more information on Chris Wolf to the authorities. One person had seen Wolf go into an angry tirade aimed at me after he read an article about our company printed in the Boulder Daily Camera in early 1996.
Apparently Wolf accused the company I worked for, Lockheed Martin, of selling arms to South
American countries." (Exhibit 2) These statements are false and the defendants know them to be false, publishing them willfully, intentionally, maliciously, and with a reckless disregard for their truth. The plaintiff has never gone into "an angry tirade" aimed at John Ramsey or "accused Lockheed Martin of selling arms to South American countries."
24. On Page 205 of their book The Death of Innocence, the defendants write "Whatever the police's intentions, Wolf went on our suspect list. He represented too many unanswered questions." (Exhibit 3) This statement is false. Chris Wolf has been cleared by the police and does not "represent too many unanswered questions." The defendants made this statement willfully, maliciously, and with the deliberate intention of publicly casting suspicion upon him as a murderer who sexually assaulted their six-year- old daughter.
25. The sole purpose of publishing these statements was so that the defendants could divert attention away from Patsy Ramsey by directing Boulder authorities and the reading public's attention, through imputation and innuendo, to Chris Wolf as a legitimate murder suspect in the death of their daughter, knowing full well that Patsy Ramsey had murdered JonBenet Ramsey.
26. Defendants knew, or should have known, that Chris Wolf had been cleared of suspicion by the police, along with the hundreds of other bogus murder "suspects," many of whose names had been provided and continue to be provided to authorities by the defendants in their desperate attempt to cover up Patsy Ramsey's crime.
27. On a taped broadcast of NBC television network's morning program The Today Show, hosted by Katie Couric, filmed in New York City on February 2000, and then broadcast on March 24th of that same year, John and Patsy Ramsey were asked why Chris Wolf's name appeared as a murder suspect in their recently published book. John Ramsey replied: "I can tell you when - when we first started
looking at - at one particular lead early on - my reaction was, "This is it. This is the killer." And our investigator said, "Whoa, whoa, whoa." He'd say, "Don't do a Boulder Police on me. Don't rush to conclusions." (Exhibit 4) Chris Wolf's photograph was then displayed on national television as Mr.
Ramsey spoke these words. John Ramsey made this statement intentionally, maliciously, and with a reckless disregard for its truth, with the express purpose of directing attention to Chris Wolf as the murderer of his daughter.
28. These statements by John and Patsy Ramsey, made in their book and in the media, along with the investigative reports prepared by their private detectives, are meant to suggest and to create, both in the minds of the general public and in the minds of the Boulder authorities, a deliberate, cumulative, and false impression that the plaintiff Chris Wolf is the murderer of JonBenet Ramsey. As
a result of these statements, the plaintiff has been the subject of heightened, unwelcome, and unflattering media scrutiny. By way of example, a recent television movie produced and directed by journalist Lawrence Schiller entitled Perfect Murder, Perfect Town, and the book on which it was based, both portray the plaintiff as a potentially violent and unstable murder suspect. In another example, the Boulder Weekly (4/13/00) published a front-page story called: John Ramsey's Prime
Suspect: Boulder Weekly Probes the Complicated Life of Chris Wolf. (Exhibit 5)
29. "But for" the elaborate attempt by Patsy Ramsey and her husband to avoid the consequences of Mrs. Ramsey killing her daughter, there would have been no "unsolved" murder, and, therefore, by definition, no need for an intrusive police investigation, news stories or unwelcome media attention. John and Patsy are directly and proximately the cause of the harm created to the plaintiff, and solely responsible for the need for an investigation into the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. It was entirely foreseeable that their conduct in covering up Patsy's killing of her daughter would result in an intrusive police investigation and massive media attention. The defendants have stated repeatedly on
television and in newspaper interviews that their sole motivation for writing their book and for publicly speaking out is to find the killer of their daughter and to see that the police investigation does not cease into the whereabouts of the murderer.
AS AND FOR A FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST PATSY RAMSEY FOR LIBEL AND SLANDER
30. Incorporating all of the allegations in paragraphs one through twenty-nine, the plaintiff Chris Wolf alleges that the defendant Patsy Ramsey, in an attempt to cover up the brutal murder and sexual assault of her daughter JonBenet Ramsey, willfully, intentionally, maliciously, and with a reckless disregard for the truth, published defamatory statements about the plaintiff in her book and in her statements on television and in the printed media intending to create a deliberate, cumulative, false impression of Chris Wolf as a murder suspect, thereby proximately causing permanent injury to his
reputation by causing him to be exposed to public hatred, contempt and ridicule. By virtue of the nature of the defamatory subject matter in Patsy Ramsey's book and public statements, their publication constitutes libel and slander per se and the plaintiff is entitled to recover actual damages for his injuries. Patsy Ramsey's conduct, moreover, demonstrates actual malice, willful misconduct, and that entire want of care which raises a presumption of conscious indifference to consequences entitling the plaintiff to an award of significant punitive damages to punish, penalize and deter Patsy
Ramsey from repeating her unlawful conduct.
AS AND FOR A FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST JOHN RAMSEY FOR LIBEL AND SLANDER
31. Incorporating all of the allegations in paragraphs one through twenty-nine, the plaintiff Chris Wolf alleges that the defendant John Ramsey, in an attempt to help his wife Patsy Ramsey cover up her brutal murder and sexual assault of his daughter, JonBenet Ramsey, willfully, intentionally, maliciously, and with a reckless disregard for the truth published defamatory statements about the plaintiff in his book and in his statements on television and in the printed media, intending to create a deliberate,
cumulative, false impression of Chris Wolf as a murder suspect, thereby proximately causing
permanent injury to his reputation by causing him to be exposed to public hatred, contempt and ridicule. By virtue of the nature of the defamatory subject matter in John Ramsey's book and public statements, their publication constitutes libel and slander per se and the plaintiff is entitled to recover actual damages for his injuries. John Ramsey's conduct, moreover, demonstrates actual
malice, willful misconduct, and that entire want of care which raises a presumption of conscious indifference to consequences entitling the plaintiff to an award of significant punitive damages to punish, penalize and deter John Ramsey from repeating his unlawful conduct.
AS AND FOR A SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST PATSY RAMSEY FOR INTENTIONAL INFLICTION
OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS BY EXTREME AND OUTRAGEOUS CONDUCT
32. Incorporating all of the allegations in paragraphs one through twenty-nine, the plaintiff Chris Wolf alleges that the defendant Patsy Ramsey, in an attempt to cover up the brutal murder and sexual assault of her daughter JonBenet Ramsey, willfully, intentionally, and maliciously, and with a reckless disregard for the truth, has made and continues to make statements to the police, district attorney, and to the public at large, through the reports of private investigators, news conferences, press releases, magazine and television interviews, and a book which she co-authored with the defendant John Ramsey titled The Death of Innocence, intended to create a deliberate, cumulative and false
impression that the plaintiff Chris Wolf brutally murdered her six-year-old daughter, JonBenet Ramsey, after sexually assaulting her. The defendant Patsy Ramsey, knowing her statements to be false, knew her conduct was certain, or substantially certain, to cause extreme and severe emotional distress in
the plaintiff, and, as a result, she has caused Chris Wolf to experience extreme humiliation, embarrassment and emotional distress by making him the unwanted focus of law enforcement authorities and the general public as a murder suspect in a horrific and brutal death of a little girl. Because of Patsy Ramsey's conduct, which is so extreme, outrageous and shocking that it is intolerable and goes beyond all possible bounds of decency in a civilized society, the plaintiff suffered and continues to suffer deep and severe emotional pain as the result of being shunned, hated, ridiculed and held in contempt by members of his community, who now think of him as being accused of the brutal murder of a six-year-old girl. As a direct and proximate result of the acts of the defendant Patsy Ramsey, the plaintiff has suffered great mental and physical anguish. The plaintiff
Chris Wolf is entitled to an award of punitive damages from the defendant Patsy Ramsey in order to punish, penalize and deter the defendant from continuing to repeat her unlawful conduct.
AS AND FOR A SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST JOHN RAMSEY FOR INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF
EMOTIONAL DISTRESS BY EXTREME AND OUTRAGEOUS CONDUCT
33. Incorporating all of the allegations in paragraphs one through twenty-nine, the plaintiff Chris Wolf alleges that the defendant John Ramsey, in an attempt to help his wife Patsy Ramsey cover up her brutal murder and her sexual assault of his daughter, JonBenet Ramsey, willfully, intentionally and
maliciously, and with a reckless disregard for the truth, made and continues to make statements to the Boulder, Colorado police, district attorney, and to the public at large, through the reports of private investigators, news conferences, press releases, magazine and television interviews, and a book which he co-authored titled The Death of Innocence, intended to create a deliberate, cumulative and false impression that the plaintiff Chris Wolf brutally murdered his six-year-old
daughter, JonBenet Ramsey, after the plaintiff sexually assaulted her. The defendant John Ramsey, knowing his wife's statements to be false, repeated her statements, knowing his conduct, and hers, was certain, or substantially certain, to cause extreme and severe emotional distress in the plaintiff,
and, as a result, he has caused Chris Wolf to experience extreme humiliation, embarrassment and emotional distress by making him the unwanted focus of law enforcement authorities and the general public as a murder suspect in a horrific and brutal death of a little girl. Because of John Ramsey's conduct, which is so extreme, outrageous and shocking that it is intolerable and goes beyond all possible bounds of decency in a civilized society, the plaintiff suffered and continues to suffer deep and severe emotional pain as the result of being shunned, hated, ridiculed and held in contempt by members of his community, who now think of him as a police suspect accused of the brutal murder of a six-year-old girl. As a direct and proximate result of the acts of the defendant John Ramsey, the plaintiff has suffered great mental and physical anguish. The plaintiff Chris Wolf is entitled to an
award of punitive damages from the defendant John Ramsey in order to punish, penalized and deter the defendant from continuing to repeat his unlawful conduct.
WHEREFORE, plaintiff Chris Wolf prays for the following relief:
That judgment be entered against defendant Patsy Ramsey for general damages in the amount of five million dollars ($5,000,000.00);
That judgment be entered against defendant John Ramsey for general damages in the amount of five million dollars ($5,000,000.00);
That judgment be entered against defendant Patsy Ramsey for punitive damages in the amount of twenty million dollars ($20,000,000.00).
That judgment be entered against defendant John Ramsey for punitive damages in the amount of twenty million dollars ($20,000,000.00).
That all costs of this action be assessed against the defendants.
DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL
Plaintiff demands a trial by jury on all the issues so triable.
Dated: June 12, 2000
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
ATLANTA DIVISION
ROBERT CHRISTIAN WOLF, )
)
Plaintiff, ) CIVIL ACTION
)
v. ) 00-CIV-1187 (JEC)
)
JOHN BENNETT RAMSEY & ) Judge Julie Carnes
PATRICIA PAUGH RAMSEY, )
)
Defendants. )
2. Plaintiff Robert Christian Wolf is a citizen of the State of Colorado for purposes of diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. 1332.
3. Defendant John Bennett Ramsey resides in Atlanta, Georgia.
4. Defendant John Bennett Ramsey is a citizen of the State of Georgia for purposes of diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. 1332.
5. Defendant Patricia Paugh Ramsey resides in Atlanta, Georgia. Defendant Patricia Paugh Ramsey is a citizen of the State of Georgia for purposes of diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. 1332.
Respectfully submitted,
_________________________
EVAN M. ALTMAN
Georgia Bar No. 014066
Suite 495
5901-C Peachtree Dunwoody Road
Atlants, Georgia 30328
(770) 394-6466
Fax: (770) 393-1990
__________________________
DARNAY HOFFMAN
PRO HAC VICE
Law Offices of Darnay Hoffman
210 West 70th Street, Suite 209
New York, NY 10023
(212) 712-2766
Fax: (212) 496-8676