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You already knew that former Syracuse Orange basketball coach Bernie Fine is suing ESPN for defamation related to the sexual abuse allegations they reported. Now you get to find out how much he's seeking.
Per CNYCentral, it's Eleven. Millllllion. Dollars.
Attorneys for ESPN have moved to Federal Court the defamation lawsuit brought against ESPN by former Syracuse University assistant basketball coach Bernie Fine. This new legal action also removes as defendants the reporter and producer who worked on the Bobby Davis story along with The Walt Disney Company and The Hearst Corporation.
So Mark Schwarz is officially not named in the lawsuit, which, according to some lawyers I talked to on Twitter, means Fine's lawyers are zeroing in on ESPN in order to focus their money-getting efforts. So, it's officially Bernie vs. ESPN, Inc.
According to Syracuse.com, Fine's lawyers served ESPN on April 4 and the lawsuit will move to federal court instead of state court.
A U.S. Magistrate has scheduled an initial court hearing for July 18th. So between this, Laurie Fine's lawsuit against ESPN and the appeal of the Jim Boeheim defamation suit, we will never, ever, ever be done with any of us. Also, ProTip, if you're thinking about becoming a Syracuse blogger, make sure you go to law school and spend a decade working in defamation litigation first...