Italian Social Club Prevails In Libel Claims For Mafia Accusations
by
Joseph C. Maya on Apr. 17, 2017
Accident & Injury Accident & Injury Defamation & Slander
Summary: Article about a local Italian Social Club involved in a defamation case with a town resident who stated that the club had mafia affiliations.
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In the case of Lega Siciliana Social Club v. St. Germaine, an incorporated social club appealed the grant of summary judgment by the Superior Court in favor of a neighborhood resident. The social club claimed that the trial court improperly concluded the allegedly defamatory statements were not libelous per se and that there was no showing of actual damages. Libel per se is a libel the defamatory meaning of which is apparent on the face of the statement and is actionable without proof of actual damages. The individual is entitled to recover, as general damages, for the injury to his reputation and for the humiliation and mental suffering which the libel caused him. Whether a publication is libelous per se is a question for the court.
The social club was restricted to native born Sicilians or natural born Americans of Sicilian ancestry. The social club applied for and obtained a liquor license. The resident, upset with increased traffic and noise, sent a letter to the president of the board of aldermen detailing his concerns. In the letter, the resident made references to "Mafia" associations and undue political influence. The appellate court held that since the social club had not shown actual economic damages it had to prove the statements constituted libel per se. The allegation that the club was connected with organized crime suggested an involvement with crimes, many of which involved moral turpitude and were punishable by imprisonment and thus was libelous per se. The absolute privilege which extended to quasi-judicial proceedings did not apply. The resident's letter was sent long after the social club had obtained its liquor license, and the resident had not indicated that there were any other proceedings pending before the board.
The judgment of the trial court was reversed. “We also are not persuaded by the [resident’s] present argument that the letter reasonably can be read as an attempt to initiate a quasi-judicial proceeding. To accept that contention would be tantamount to stating that any citizen may write a defamatory letter to a municipal officer at any time under a cloak of immunity on the basis of a belated claim that the communication is an unspoken effort to initiate a governmental proceeding” explained the court. “That we will not do. Because our resolution of the first issue and the alternate ground urged by the [resident] is decisive, we need not reach the remaining issues raised by the [social club].”
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Source: Lega Siciliana Soc. Club v. St. Germaine, 77 Conn. App. 846, 825 A.2d 827, 2003 Conn. App. LEXIS 291 (Conn. App. Ct. 2003)
