Hat tip to Ashe In America. Observe her on X @AsheInAmerica for frequent updates on the trial.
On Monday, Eric Coomer, former Director of Product Technique and Safety for Dominion Voting Programs, will face off towards Mike Lindell, MyPillow, and FrankSpeech (consolidated as “Lindell”) in a lawsuit introduced in federal court docket in Colorado.
Coomer is suing Lindell for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional misery, and civil conspiracy, claiming that Lindell’s conduct provoked “an onslaught of harassment and credible dying threats issued towards him.”
The lawsuit facilities round alleged false claims and defamatory statements made by Mike Lindell because of accusations made by Joe Oltmann on The Conservative Every day Podcast (now Untamed) following the 2020 election.
Oltmann alleged that he had covertly infiltrated a cellphone name for ANTIFA members previous to the 2020 election. In the course of the name, Oltmann claims a person recognized as “Eric from Dominion” had ensured that President Trump wouldn’t win and that he “made effing certain of it.” After the 2020 election concluded, Oltmann believed “Eric from Dominion” on that decision was doubtless Eric Coomer, the then-Director of Product Technique and Safety for Dominion Voting Programs.
Following the election, quite a few vitriolic social media posts by Coomer towards President Trump and anybody who helps him, together with Coomer’s family and associates, surfaced, some with calls for that household and mates cease following him and unfriend him. In a 2021 New York Instances article by Susan Dominus titled “He Was the ‘Perfect Villian’ for Voting Conspiracists,” Coomer doesn’t dispute the posts however moderately expresses remorse that he didn’t delete them.
From the New York Times:
As Coomer watched the video, although, he felt a second sturdy emotion: a robust sense of remorse — as a result of the Fb posts had been, actually, genuine. Why, he thought, hadn’t he simply deleted them? Coomer may think about how his phrases would sound to only about any Republican, not to mention somebody already listening to on Fox Information that Dominion was switching votes for Biden. He instructed me that he believed each phrase of what he mentioned on Fb, however when colleagues later requested him what he was considering, he was frank: He had screwed up. At a time when well-funded efforts to sow distrust within the election had been already underway, Coomer had given conspiracy theorists a invaluable useful resource, a grain of sand they may remodel into one thing that had the texture — the false promise — of proof.
A few of these posts will likely be permitted as proof through the trial beginning on Monday, nevertheless, some key posts and attention-grabbing details, as reported by the New York Instances, is not going to.
Within the Order on Movement in Limine (looking for exclusion of arguments or proof from trial), Coomer had sought to preclude a number of “classes of proof” from the trial (and the choose’s ruling on them):
- Coomer’s September 2021 automotive accident – the choose will permit questioning concerning the accident throughout cross-examination however is not going to permit the body-cam footage to be considered or any testimony past “the truthfulness of Coomer’s statements to police about his involvement within the accident)
- his intercourse life – Granted as a result of it was unopposed by Lindell’s protection
- his drug and alcohol abuse – Granted
- his non secular beliefs or opinions – Granted
- his opinions about legislation enforcement, Black Lives Matter motion, and associated points – Granted
- his Fb posts about President Trump – Denied
- different assorted Fb posts – Granted for the particular posts exemplified however denied for unspecified posts
- a 118-page doc titled “Eric Coomer: Pawn, Plant, or Perp?” – Granted
What’s Permitted
In September 2021, after the incident’s alleged within the lawsuit, Coomer was concerned in an car accident in Colorado. He crashed his truck right into a constructing and fled the scene to the bar he owned down the road. When he was confronted by police on the institution, he denied any data of the accident whereas telling police that he had simply completed some pictures with the cook dinner on the bar.
After an hour, whereas behind the police automotive in handcuffs, and after the police spoke with Coomer’s legal professional on-scene, Coomer lastly admitted that he hit the constructing and panicked.
This will likely be admitted for the aim of evaluating his “truthfulness,” nevertheless, the physique cam footage is not going to be admissible.
Social Media Posts About President Trump
Coomer’s vitriolic posts in direction of President Trump and anybody who would vote for him from 2016 by the 2020 election are permitted.
On July 21, 2016, Coomer wrote:
“In case you are planning to vote for that autocratic, narcissitic, fascist ass-hat blowhard and his [C]hristian jihadist VP pic, UNFRIEND ME NOW! No, I’m not joking…Solely an absolute F***KING IDIOT may ever vote for that wind-bag f***-tard FASCIST RACIST F***!! No bulls**t. I don’t give a rattling when you’re buddy, household, or random acquaintance, pull the lever, mark an oval, contact a display screen for that carnival barker…UNFRIEND ME NOW. I’ve no want in any respect to ever work together with you. You might be past hope, past purpose. You might be managed by worry, response and bulls**t. Get your sh*t collectively.
Oh, if that doesn’t persuade you, F*** YOU! Significantly, this f***ing ass-clown stands towards the whole lot that makes this nation superior! You need in on that? You deserve nothing however contempt.
In a “2nd edit” later within the publish, he continued:
“these opinions are rational, and fully my very own. They’re primarily based in purpose and extremely credible (emphasis added). Although they aren’t essentially the ideas of my employer, although if not, I ought to in all probability discover one other job…Who desires to work for full morons? None of my private opinions have an effect on my skilled conduct or attitudes. I’m non-partisan. I’m not, nevertheless, keen to face by and watch this nice nation be taken over by fascists with out saying one thing, something.”
Dominus wrote in her article about Dominion’s efforts to arrange guardrails for workers to “categorical themselves” given the sensitivities of their career:
“Coomer was a part of a number of conversations amongst Dominion staff about how one can steadiness their proper to specific themselves with the sensitivities particular to their trade. Dominion additionally searched by its staff’ social media accounts, checking for feedback or tweets that may mirror poorly on the corporate. Nobody ever raised any considerations with Coomer about his posts, as a result of his posts had been solely obtainable to his Fb mates.”
Whereas Coomer rejects the concept that his unhinged however “rational,” “fully [his] personal,” and “primarily based in purpose and extremely credible” social media posts may have an effect on his work in any means, he mentioned he’d be keen to stop his job in the event that they (his employer) didn’t agree along with his ideology (“I ought to in all probability discover one other job…who desires to work for full morons?”) and that he “can’t stand by and watch this nice nation be taken over with out saying one thing.”
Lastly, on June 2, 2020, Coomer posted a de facto “Antifa Manifesto” titled, “To All Media: Public Assertion From “ANTIFA” in Response to the Threats Issued by United States President Donald J. Trump”
In it, they declare “‘ANTIFA’ isn’t a corporation. There’s no membership, no conferences, no dues, no guidelines, no leaders, no construction. It’s, actually, an concept and nothing extra” in a “Public Assertion from ‘ANTIFA’” that was posted by the one who “maintained the ‘AntiFa’ web page on Fb since founding it in 2017.”
The trial begins right now in federal court docket in Denver, CO and is predicted to run roughly 10 days. Test again with The Gateway Pundit for updates.
