Louis Freeh on Monday filed in Centre County Court preliminary objections to former Penn State President Graham Spanier’s claims of tortious interference and defamation in his lawsuit against the former FBI director who was appointed by Penn State to investigate the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
In the objection filed on behalf of defendants Freeh; his law firm Freeh Sporkin and Sullivan LLP; and his risk management firm Freeh Group International Solutions, Freeh says Spanier’s claim of tortious interference is “premised solely on an April 12, 2012 email sent by Freeh,” to then Penn State trustee Ronald Tomalis.
In the email, sent three months before Freeh released his investigative report, Freeh was responding to a previous email from Tomalis, who had forwarded a news story that Spanier would be taking an unspecified position in federal government. Tomalis added the comment “Seems someone might not have done their homework.” Freeh replied, “Very interesting–we have done our job notifying the Federal prosecutors regarding the latest information.”
Freeh’s objection stated “Spanier claims that this vague reference in a statement to unnamed federal prosecutors cost Spanier opportunities with unnamed federal government agencies in the undefined U.S. intelligence community and on an unnamed board of directors.”
The objection goes on the say that Spanier provides no facts establishing a prospective job contract or Freeh’s motivation. It also stated that by the time Spanier added his claim of tortious interference to the suit against Freeh in February, the statute of limitations had expired. Spanier said he only became aware of the email in October 2015.
Freeh also filed objections to Spanier’s claim that statements made by Freeh in the Freeh Report, during the July 2012 press conference announcing its findings and in a later statement were defamatory.
Freeh’s report claimed that Spanier and others knew of a previous child sex abuse allegation against Sandusky and failed to report a subsequent allegation to authorities. Spanier was later indicted on charges of endangering welfare of a minor, failure to report suspected child abuse, perjury, obstruction of justice and conspiracy. The perjury, obstruction and conspiracy charges were thrown out earlier this year. Former Penn State vice president Gary Schultz, who had been charged earlier, also had the perjury, obstruction and conspiracy charges quashed, while former athletic director Tim Curley had obstruction and conspiracy charges quashed.
In Freeh’s objection he says his statements about Spanier were only opinions about Spanier’s state of mind or conduct and the facts underlying those opinions are disclosed in his report. He also says Spanier is a public figure and that he has not shown Freeh’s statements with actual malice.
The objection adds that evidence used in the report was also considered by the grand jury prior to Spanier’s indictment, and that a judge bound Spanier over for trial. “This evidence of probable cause renders Spanier unable to show actual malice as a matter of law.”
