By: Danny Jacobs

I wrote last week about the defamation lawsuit Rick Reinhardt filed Julie Ensor, his rival for clerk of the Baltimore County Circuit Court. The article prompted some online discussion, and the big question was one my editor posed when I initially told her about the story: Can a person be sued for defamation based on something he or she tells a police officer?

The short answer – yes. A divided Court of Appeals ruled in 1993 that statements to police are not afforded absolute privilege, meaning they are not immune from defamation lawsuits. (The case is Caldor v. Bowden if you’re scoring at home.)

Robin Leone, a media law lawyer with Saul Ewing LLP in Baltimore, said Reinhardt’s bigger challenge will be proving he was defamed. (Full disclosure: Leone has represented The Daily Record in a First Amendment matter.) Reinhardt has to show Ensor’s statement was false and that she intended to harm him when talking to police.

“It’s a higher burden for the plaintiff to prove that there was some sort of actual malice,” said Leone, who is not involved in the case.

Leone added there is one instance where statements to police are protected, when those statements are a report of a violation of a law. On the other hand, statements made in court are always protected from defamation lawsuits. This includes statements that are part of a lawsuit – like the one Reinhardt filed against Ensor.

“He’s not giving her a chance to respond,” Leone said.