Court reverses GOP candidate's win due to a lack of evidence

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit overturned an $8.2 million defamation judgment won by former Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore against the Senate Majority PAC.

Moore sued over a 2017 campaign advertisement alleging he was banned from a mall for "soliciting sex from young girls," characterizing the ad as a "deliberately constructed maze of lies and deception."

Trump-appointed Judge Elizabeth L. Branch wrote in the 45-page opinion that Moore failed to meet the demanding constitutional "actual malice" standard required for defamation claims. The court found insufficient clear and convincing evidence that the PAC subjectively knew or recklessly disregarded that its advertisement implied Moore solicited sex from a 14-year-old girl.

The panel vacated the jury's verdict and reversed the denial of the PAC's motion for judgment as a matter of law.

Moore lost his 2017 Senate bid to Democrat Doug Jones after nine women alleged misconduct.

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